


When The Water Tribe Attacked

by The_confused_writer



Category: Avatar: The Last Airbender
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Badass Azula (Avatar), Badass Katara (Avatar), Evil Water Tribe, Gen, Hurt Zuko (Avatar), Iroh (Avatar) is a Good Uncle, Iroh (Avatar) loves Tea, Lesbian Azula (Avatar), Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Ozai (Avatar) Being a Terrible Parent, Protective Azula (Avatar), Zuko is an Awkward Turtleduck
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-06-05
Updated: 2020-11-09
Packaged: 2021-03-03 21:01:31
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 10
Words: 29,656
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24542020
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/The_confused_writer/pseuds/The_confused_writer
Summary: An AU where the Water Tribe is the big bad, and Aang is found by Zuko, Iroh and Azula.
Relationships: Aang & Azula (Avatar), Aang & Iroh (Avatar), Aang & Zuko (Avatar), Azula & Iroh (Avatar), Iroh & Zuko (Avatar), Katara & Sokka (Avatar), Sokka/Ty Lee (Avatar)
Comments: 30
Kudos: 221





	1. Boy In The Iceberg

**Author's Note:**

> Zuko is 14 and Azula is 16, because she does not look or act like a 14 year old.

_ 100 years ago there was peace among the four nations. That all changed when the water tribe attacked. Only the Avatar, master of all four elements could stop him, but when the world needed him most, he vanished. 100 years have passed and the water tribe is nearing victory _

_ Some believe that the Avatar was never reborn into the Air Nomads. But I still have hope. _

_ My sister and I have been sent to find the Avatar with our uncle Iroh. Azula is skeptical but I’m determined. With the help of the Avatar, we can stop the water tribe and save the world. _

_. . . _

Zuko woke up with a splitting headache and numb hands. He blinked slowly. He was curled up on his side, his face pressed against something cold and hard. The air around him was cold and bitter and hurt to breathe. Someone groaned beside him. Zuko slowly sat up, taking in his surroundings. 

He was on a chunk of floating ice. His sister Azula was sleeping peacefully a few feet away, while his uncle Iroh was taking in the scenery, his back to Zuko. Zuko blinked a few more times to make sure he wasn’t seeing things.

He had gone to sleep on a fire nation ship. How did he end up here? The last thing he could remember was collapsing onto his bed. He stretched out his legs and carefully crawled over to his uncle, trying his hardest not to slip. Iroh heard Zuko moving and turned around.

“I think someone may have drugged our food, Prince Zuko. I knew the food tasted different last night.” Zuko gave his uncle a confused look. Iroh chuckled. “My brother gave us a rebellious crew. They must have ditched us here so they could run off and do whatever they want.” Iroh frowned. “And they didn’t even have the decency to leave behind any tea.” Zuko was at a loss for words. He knew that the crew didn’t like the royal family, but he never suspected that they would leave them to freeze to death. He silently panicked, wondering if he would die in the Southern Water Tribe’s Domain.

Iroh noticed the worried look on Zuko’s face“It’s going to be okay Zuko. You and Azula are too stubborn to let this stop you. We’ll be back on dry land in no time.” Iroh assured. “Now why don’t you come over here and look at all the pretty glaciers. They don’t have views like this in the fire nation” Zuko nodded and sat beside his uncle. He stared at all the icebergs. He didn’t think they were that pretty. Even if they were beautiful, he was too anxious to care about it. Iroh placed a hand on his shoulder and he relaxed slightly. At least he wasn’t alone.

The two of them sat there peacefully for a couple of minutes. The cold nipped at Zuko, but it wasn’t nearly as bad as he’d thought it be.

Someone moved behind him.

Azula mumbled incoherently as she sat up, rubbing her eyes tiredly. She opened her eyes fully and froze. She took in her surroundings. Then she screamed with rage. “WHAT IS THE MEANING OF THIS!” Azula stood up and looked around for their fire nation ship. “I WILL BURN THEIR SHIP TO THE GROUND WHEN I FIND THEM! TRAITORS, ALL OF THEM” 

She fumed figuratively and literally, melting the ice below her. She turned on her heel and walked towards Zuko. “Zuzu, do you have any idea why we are stranded on an iceberg?”   
He tensed again“They left us.” Zuko explained. Azula snarled and stomped her foot, cracking the ice. “Azula stop it.”

“No I’m not going to stop, not until you explain what you mean by left us.”   
Zuko groaned in frustration. “Azula you’re going to kill us all.”

Azula was about to argue when Iroh spoke.

“There is something going on over there.” He said, pointing to a glowing ball of ice in the distance.” This shut them up. The two of them scrambled to see what Iroh was talking about. Sure enough, a few hundred meters away, was a large round ball of ice, glowing a light blue. There was something inside. It looked almost human-shaped.

Iroh used firebending to propel them forward, ignoring the fact that the ice was rapidly melting around them. They moved quickly and it ended up taking less than a minute to reach the large ball of ice. By the time they reached the large ball of ice, there was barely enough room for all of them. Iroh hopped onto the chunk of ice where the frozen boy was, followed by Azula and Zuko.

They could clearly see a young boy sitting in a meditative position, his eyes closed. Azula pressed a hand against the ice. “Wow, a frozen corpse, how helpful.” Zuko rolled his eyes. Iroh pressed his hands against the ice and exhaled, melting the ice with his warm hands and breath. He slowly melted a hole into the ice. Inch by inch.

“That’s going to take forever,” Azula complained. “You’re too careful.” She threw a fire blast at the ball. It cracked the ice which immediately exploded.

. A bright beam of light shot high up into the sky as the ice cracked. The three fire benders were nearly thrown back into the icy water. Zuko shut his eyes and instinctively covered his face with his hands. He waited until it was completely silent then opened his eyes.

The ball of ice was now gone leaving behind the boy.

Zuko stared at the boy sprawled in front of him. He was young, probably a few years younger than Zuko, and had blue arrow tattoos on his head and hands. Azula gawked behind him. “Is that a tattoo on his head?” She asked. “And on another note, is he bald. Bald doesn’t look good on him” Uncle Iroh gasped, a grin spreading across his face. He recognized those clothes and tattoos. The boy grunted and Zuko kneeled down next to him.

“Hey . . are you okay?” He asked.

The boy blinked a few times before looking up at Zuko wearily with half-closed eyes. He studied Zuko’s face for a second. 

“I-” He whispered. “I need to tell you something.” Zuko nodded unsure of what to say. “Please, come closer.” Zuko leaned closer. “I-I ….” He strained his ears. “I really like your hair.” The boy’s eyes opened fully and he grinned innocently. Zuko reared back surprised. The boy leaped up off the ground then paced for a few seconds. “Sorry, my legs are just stiff.” Zuko ran a hand through his short messy hair. It had been in a topknot for most of his life, just like the rest of the family. Then he had cut in off a few months ago after having a particularly bad day. He had dealt with months of constant teasing from Azula and the crew. It felt nice to be complimented.   
“Who are you and why did we just break you out of an iceberg,” Azula asked coldly. Aang looked past Zuko to Azula. She crossed her arms and stared back disapprovingly. “Are you going to answer me or are you just going to stand there.”

“Oh, I’m Aa-ah-ah-ACHOO!” The boy flew twenty feet into the air, before gracefully floating down. He landed softly and rubbed his nose. “I’m Aang, who are you.” Zuko was too shocked to respond. Iroh nearly jumped for joy. He grinned widely and ran over to Aang.

“You’re an Airbender!” Iroh exclaimed. Aang nodded proudly. “I haven’t met an Airbender in years.” He held out his hand. Aang shook it happily. “My name is Iroh. This is my nephew Zuko and his Sister Azula.” Aang waved at them. Azula and Zuko awkwardly waved back“We weren’t expecting to find a boy in an iceberg on our search. How did you get in there.” Aang’s expression darkened. 

“I don’t remember.” He said before quickly changing the topic. “Wait, where’s Appa?” Aang ran around the wall of ice and disappeared. The three firebenders eagerly followed. Azula and Zuko gaped at the beast they found. It was a large white bison, with six legs, arrows similar to Aangs, and a large beaver-like tail. Aang was desperately trying to pry its eyelids open.

“Appa wake up buddy.” Iroh was giddy at this point, hopping from foot to foot excitedly. He shuffled over to the bison and placed a hand on his snout. Aang had now moved on to trying to pry its mouth open. The bison finally opened his eyes and licked Aang. Aang giggle and jumped up onto his head, hugging the creature the best he could. “Appa you’re alright.” Appa looked down at Iroh, who still had a hand on his snout.

“What is that thing?” Zuko asked.

“He’s Appa, my flying bison.”

Azula snorted. “Right, and this is Zuko, my flying brother.” Zuko glared at her.

Iroh spoke up.“Azula, he is telling the truth. This is an Air Bison. I’ve only heard stories. He looks very friendly.” Iroh thought for a second. “Do you think your flying bison could take us back to land. We’re stranded” 

“I am not getting on that thing.” Azula snarled and Zuko rolled his eyes. “Do you have anything to say Zuzu.” Zuko glared.

“Do you have any other ideas?” Iroh asked. Azula sighed defeated. Aang jumped up onto Appa. Iroh climbed up Appa’s side and joined him. Iroh motioned for the two of them. Zuko narrowed his eyes before slowly walking over to Appa. Iroh helped Zuko up onto the bison while Azula stood still, impatiently tapping her foot. “Would you like us to come back for you later Azula?”   
Azula groaned. 

. . .

“When you said flying bison, I assumed that it would be able to actually fly,” Azula complained.

“He’s just tired,” Aang explained. “He just needs to rest.” Azula scoffed. Zuko sat stiffly at the back of the saddle his knees pulled to his chest. He would never tell the others, but flying scared the hell out of him. He was glad the flying bison couldn’t fly. 

Aang turned around to face them.

“So, why are you firebenders up here in such a cold place?” He asked.

“We were looking for the Avatar,” Zuko answered bluntly. Aang flinched at the mention of the Avatar. Azula narrowed her eyes. Iroh raised an eyebrow.

“Did you know the Avatar,” Azula asked. “Are you the Avatar?”   
Aang spluttered. “No, I mean I knew people that knew him but I didn’t actually know him. Why, are you guys looking for him?” Azula gave him a disapproving look. “Why are you guys looking at me like that.”   
“We’re not that stupid. You knew them, didn’t you? Or maybe you are the Avatar.” Aang shook his head. “So you knew him..” Aang nodded. “Could you tell us about  **her** ?”   
“Well, she was uh, nice.”

“What was  **his** name.

“His name was-”   
“You said her before, why are you changing it to him. Why are you lying to us Aang”

Aang looked at her bewildered. He didn’t know what to say. “Are you the Avatar Aang?” Aang nodded, afraid to lie. “See that wasn’t so hard. We aren’t going to hurt you, we just needed to know where you were. Our father will be pleased once we bring you to him”   
“Azula you’re scaring him.” Iroh reprimanded. “Why don’t we just enjoy the scenery. We probably won’t be seeing sights like this for a while after this.” Aang sighed, grateful for the interruption. He could use some time to think. They rode in silence for the next twenty minutes.

Zuko silently watched the world around him. He had never seen icebergs as big as these before. They were prettier and less intimidating than he had expected. He shivered as another gust of icy wind hit them. He wouldn’t miss the cold. The fire nation was never this cold. Cool was the worst it ever got. Zuko couldn’t fathom why anyone would want to stay here for more than a week. Zuko moved closer to Aang. Aang turned around to face him.

“So, uh, how are you?” Zuko asked, internally cringing at his own awkwardness. Aang didn’t seem to notice.    
“I’ve been better. I’m a little confused and uh-” He lowered his voice. “I’m a little scared of your sister.” Zuko snickered. “But you guys seem nice. Especially your Uncle. He reminds me of one of my friends, Monk Gyatso.” 

“Yeah... he’s nice.” Zuko agreed. “He’s been a big part of our lives since we were little. I hope you like tea because he’ll force you to drink it. He’ll be a good firebending teacher.” 

“Ozai would be better.” Azula interrupted. Zuko scowled. “Oh come on Zuzu, you’re just bitter because I’m the favorite child.” Zuko flushed red with anger and shame. Azula smirked triumphantly. 

Zuko went back to looking at the icebergs, his mood ruined. He closed his eyes, wondering what the next few months would be like. He’d never thought that he would actually find the Avatar. It was just some half-assed attempt at getting rid of him and Azula.

He spotted something grey among the sea of white and blue. A metallic ship in the distance with blue streaks. There was no smoke, only a wave, that pushed the boat forward. Zuko immediately knew what it was. “Uncle. There’s a water tribe ship ahead of us.” Zuko warned. Iroh, who had been about to fall asleep, immediately sat up, a ball of fire forming in his hand.

Aang perked up upon hearing the news“Do you think they’ll have waterbenders?” Aang asked excitedly. “I’ve never met one before, and I’ll need someone to teach me since you guys already know I’m the Avatar.”   
The three firebenders ignored Aang as they looked at the enemy ship ahead. Zuko spotted A small projectile flying towards them. Zuko ducked just in time, narrowly avoiding the boomerang. It flew over his head and into the distance. “Aang, turn this thing around, we need to go.” He ordered. Aang frowned confused. Zuko groaned. “Aang they’re the enemy they’re going to-” Zuko was stopped mid-sentence as a boomerang smashed into the back of his head, before falling down into the saddle. Zuko slumped forward, unconscious. Aang yelped, checking Zuko’s pulse to make sure he was still alive.

Azula put on her helmet and grabbed the boomerang. “Get ready to fight Aang,” Azula told him. Aang looked between Iroh and Azula confused. Then he turned back to the ship.

Someone was speeding towards them. He tightened his grip on Zuko’s limp arm.

. She was riding a wave towards them and was posed to strike. Azula got into a fighting position. She slowly moved, electricity gathering around her. 

“What are you doing, that’ll kill her. Stop it!” Aang pleaded. Azula ignored him as she pointed towards the area in front of the girl. As the lightning shot from her fingertips, the girl jumped, momentarily detaching herself from the ocean. The lightning hit the water, electrocuting everything in the vicinity. Then the girl landed back in the water and continued to speed towards them, pumping her arms and legs to move faster.

She was only ten feet away. She raised her arms, a wave raising with them. Then she swung her arms forward. Azula braced herself, and Iroh grabbed Zuko’s arm.

The wave hit them hard, nearly throwing off Zuko and Iroh. Aang held onto Appa’s reins, while Azula held onto the saddle. Appa emerged from the water, with 5 passengers on board. Azula was the first to notice the water tribe girl.

She whipped around. The girl stood there, ready to attack, tendrils of water reaching towards them. The girl looked only a few years older than Aang but seemed ten times more mature. She wore a blue fur coat and gloves and wore a mask that covered the bottom half of her face. Her eyes were icy and filled with determination. She moved swiftly and gracefully as she pulled water from the ocean and threw it towards Azula.

Azula thrust her hands forward, creating a wall of fire to evaporate the water. Her defense was effective. The girl threw ice spikes at her, which Azula easily dodged. Azula lunged at the girl only to be shoved off Appa by a wave of water that struck her midsection. Iroh managed to grab her wrist and pull her back on, using his other hand to send a fireball in the water tribe girls’ direction. She dodged easily and lunged, only to be knocked back by a burst of wind from Aang. She fell back into the water. 

“Thank you, Aang,” Iroh said. “Do you think your bison has rested enough. I don’t know if this is a fight we can win”   
“We’re at a huge disadvantage here.” Azula pointed out. “We may be fire bending masters, but we are going up against skilled water-benders, while surrounded by an ocean.” A water tendril reached towards them and was evaporated by Azula. More tendrils attacked from each side, trying to submerge and grab her limbs.   
“Appa Yip Yip,”Aang said. Appa didn’t move any faster or start to fly. Aang tried again, this time more desperately. “Appa Yip Yip.” Azula evaporated the girl's attacks with her own. The girl moved quickly, circling around Appa. Iroh helped Azula, doing his best to not hurt the girl, while Aang tried his hardest to get Appa to fly.

The girl moved back and raised her arms creating another wave. Appa groaned loudly and lifted his tail. Just before the wave hit them, Appa took off into the air. The wave narrowly missed them, and the girl watched them go confused. She sent one last tendril towards them. It managed to grab the boomerang before being evaporated by Azula. The boomerang fell down into the ocean while Appa carried the four of them out of reach.

Aang looked down at the girl. She looked back. There was something about her eyes that drew him in. They were filled with such hatred and despair. Aang wished that he could somehow help her. Zuko groaned beside him and Aang broke eye contact with the girl. Iroh helped Zuko into a sitting position. “Let's hope that doesn’t leave too big of a bump,” Iroh said. Zuko grunted and rubbed the back of his head, wincing when his hand ran over a small bump. Aang moved so he was next to Zuko.

“Don’t worry, you didn’t miss much. Just a waterbender.”Aang explained quickly. Zuko nodded as he took in his surroundings. He yelped.

“Are we flying?!” He asked afraid.

Azula cackled. “Why, are you scared?” Zuko scowled at her. “Awwww Zuzu’s scared of flying. “ Azula teased. Zuko looked down at his shoes and moved as far away from Azula as he could. Iroh gave her a disapproving look.

Aang remained oblivious, happy to finally be in the sky again where he belonged.

. . . 

The water tribe girl sat next to her brother, her arms crossed defiantly in front of her chest. Their father stared down at the two of them. “Your attack today was . . . acceptable. I am neither disappointed or impressed. Sokka your attack with the boomerang was exceptional, but that was all you did. Katara your fighting was sub-par but at least you managed to cause them some trouble.”   
“They’re three skilled firebenders and the Avatar, how was I supposed to defeat them?” The girl, Katara argued. Their father nodded. 

Sokka sighed. “But you had an entire ocean to use, you could have drowned the rest of them and saved the boy.” Katara punched his shoulder, and Sokka elbowed her back. Their father sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose.

“You two are better than this. Katara, go practice your water bending with Hama, Sokka, go help around the ship to build strength. And I better not catch you with your Girlfriend. ” Sokka rolled his eyes. Katara punched him again and Sokka kicked her shin. He pulled out his sword, and Katara bended water from her pouch making ice shards.

Their father sighed. “Or just fight each other I guess.”


	2. Visitors

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Gaang travels to a nearby Earth Village to get supplies.

_ The thunderstorm was too strong. They were all going down. Azula screamed as Iroh was pulled off of Appa down into the unforgiving ocean. Zuko held on tight to the reins his eyes filled with tears. There was another flash of lightning and Azula screamed as she was thrown backward. Zuko cried out to her as she disappeared over the side. Aang watched her go, his mouth frozen shut, and his mind racing. The roar of the storm suddenly disappeared leaving him and Zuko alone in the silence. He looked towards Aang. _

_ “It’s all your fault.” _

_ Then he let go. _ _  
_ Aang woke with a start. He looked around to make sure everyone was still safe. Azula and Zuko were curled up at the back. Azula had draped her arm protectively across Zuko and was peacefully sleeping with her cheek pressed against his forehead. Aang smiled to himself. He looked over to see Iroh staring at the clouds below.

Everyone was safe. He was safe.  _ We’re going to a nearby Earth Kingdom Village.  _ He reminded himself. The group had decided on it yesterday after the confrontation with the Water Tribe. He looked back over at Iroh, who was still peacefully staring at the clouds.

“Iroh,” Aang whispered. Iroh flinched, nearly flinging himself off of Appa. He turned around and sighed. “Sorry.” Aang apologized. 

Iroh shook his head. “No, it’s fine. I should have been more prepared. Azula used to scare me all the time when she was little. She would always jump out and yell. Now she scares me in other ways.” The two of them laughed. Iroh looked over at his nephew and niece. He looks at both of them with such love and affection, that if Aang didn’t know otherwise, he would have assumed Iroh was their father “Azula may seem to mean at first, but she’s soft at heart.”

Aang nodded as he looked at the two. He turned to Iroh. “So if you’re their uncle, where are their parents.” Iroh cringed.

“Their mother is missing and their Father is . . . not a very good parent. He never has fun with them. He only ever talks to them when they’re training and trust me, he is not a good teacher either.” Aang nodded.

“I never had a dad. I just had Monk Gyatso.” He told Iroh. “We had lots of fun together. I think he was a good guardian. I mean... he was nicer than all the other monks. He had a really good sense of humor.” Iroh smiled. 

“I’ve heard that about Airbenders before. I hope it’s true, humor is a great trait to possess.” Aang grinned. “Now why don’t you go back to sleep Aang. We should be at the town by tomorrow and it would be a shame if you weren’t well-rested.” Aang nodded and laid back down, closing his eyes, and Iroh looked back at the sky.

“Can we go to the Southern Air Temple after. I wanna see how everyone is doing?” Aang asked, his eyes still closed. Iroh flinched at the mention of the Air Nomads.

“Sure.” He replied. Aang smiled then drifted off into a peaceful slumber.

Iroh looked back at the clouds.  _ How long was he frozen? _

. . .

Azula and Zuko were still asleep by the time Appa landed. Aang had woken up as soon as they landed, and Iroh had stayed awake, on look out. Aang looked down at the sleepy siblings. Azula’s arm was still draped across Zuko, who was peacefully snoring with his back to Azula. Aang grinned mischievously as he picked up a stick. He silently crawled over and poked Azula’s foot. 

“Azula, there’s a prickle-” Aang wasn’t given the opportunity to finish. In one swift motion, Azula jumped up to her feet, summoned fire daggers and lunged at Aang. Aang screamed and jumped backwards, narrowly avoiding being burned by her daggers. Aang floated down to the ground and looked up at Azula. 

“Don’t test me.” She warned. “I am always ready to strike.” She glanced back at Zuko. “And you better not tell anyone about this.” Iroh laughed from where he sat on Appa’s saddle. “Shut up old man. I am more powerful than you will ever be.” Iroh remained unoffended as he climbed off of Appa and landed on the ground.

Zuko sat up, rubbing his eyes wearily. “How long have we been on the ground?” He asked. 

“Only a few minutes.” Aang responded. “You only missed Azula trying to kill me.”   
Zuko scoffed. “What a surprise.” He hopped down off of Appa and patted down his clothes, trying to get rid of wrinkles and strands of thick white Appa hair. He glared at Appa after he pulled a particularly large clump from his own hair. “We’ll need to find a place to hide your Bison. We can’t let anyone know we’ve found the Avatar.”   
Aang frowned. “Do we have to. Appa gets lonely when we leave him alone.” He pressed his body against Appa’s head. Appa groaned in response.

“Zuko is right. We can’t go into town with an air Bison. We will only be staying for a night or two. Your Bison won’t be alone for long. We just have to buy some stuff from the village since we’re out of food and tea.” He pulled a small bag of coins from his robe. “And they always said I was paranoid for keeping money on me.”

. . .

They walked through the Earth Kingdom town, in no particular hurry. Aang examined the buildings, noting how all the windows seemed to be bored shut. Azula kept an eye out, checking to see if anyone was following them. Zuko’s eyes remained glued to a couple of kids practicing their Earthbending. They were heading towards a market, to get new clothes for the journey ahead. People gave them odd looks as they passed, eyes lingering on their fire nation garb. Aang was wearing a hat that Iroh had picked out, to hide his tattoos. 

“Mommy are those fire nation people.” A young girl asked. Her mother immediately shushed her and pulled her away from the group.

“Why are they looking at you like that?” Aang asked Azula.

“They don’t like us. The fire nation and the Earth Kingdom aren’t on the greatest of terms. They can stand each other, but just barely. Like me and Zuko.” She laughed at her own joke. Zuko smirked.

“Really, last time I checked the Fire Nation and the Earth Kingdom were on great terms,” Aang said. 

Azula and Zuko shared a look but didn’t say anything. Iroh cleared his throat to grab everyone's attention.

“We probably shouldn’t make the return of the Avatar known or draw too much attention to ourselves.” Iroh pointed out. “I think we need new clothes.” Azula groaned. 

“Azula, we are coming up to a clothing shop. Please try to find something you like.” Iroh said. “You too Zuko. Aang I will help you find some clothes.”

They arrived at a small shop. Azula pushed open the wooden door and stepped inside. Tables were set out across the room and were piled with clothes in shades of green, gold, and brown.

“Fine, this one looks bearable,” Azula said, picking out a plain green dress that was cut off a few inches above her ankles. Zuko picked out a random dark green tunic with a lighter pair of green pants. Azula examined some of the hairpieces, cringing at some of the more elaborate ones. She settled on a small hair clip adorned with a metal flower. 

Aang tried on shoes, looking at what all the other shoppers were wearing as reference. Iroh helped him choose his garb, thinking that his niece and nephew could choose on their own.

Aang tried on a large pair of gloves. “I could use these to hide my tattoos.” He told Iroh. Iroh chuckled.

“Maybe in a smaller size.” He found another pair of gloves that were twice as small. Aang excitedly tried them.  _ Good job Iroh, you’ve adopted another child.  _ He thought to himself.  _ At least this one seems to have some social skills.  _ He looked over at Zuko to check on him. Zuko was hunched over as he walked by tables of clothes, avoiding all of the other shoppers. He looked over at Azula who looked ready to kill anyone who approached her. He sighed.

Zuko had been rifling through pants when he was approached by a girl around his age. She had been giggling with her friends before going over to Zuko and had obvious nefarious intentions. At least she did in Zuko’s mind.

He tensed as soon as she moved next to him. “Hello, my name is Kyo. What’s your name.” She asked shyly Zuko didn’t answer and simply picked out a pair of pants, before awkwardly hurrying away from the situation. Kyo sighed and walked back to her friend group disappointed. Azula watched her brother, clutching her dress tightly. She could get attention like that if she wanted too. She looked around the shop only to see the same girl Zuko had rejected shyly moving towards her. Azula decided that she must beat Zuko at the art of flirting.

“Hello, my names Kyo, what’s yours.” Azula grinned.

“My name is Azula. I must say, that’s a... a sharp outfit you got there Kyo. You should be careful or you might accidentally impale someone and sentence them to a slow painful death . . . because it’s so sharp.” Kyo grinned nervously. Azula internally celebrated.

“Thank you?” Azula grinned widely. Kyo stood frozen, unsure of what to say. “I like your clothes, are you from the fire nation?” Azula nodded. “Wow, are you a firebender?” Azula answered by lighting a flame in her palm. The girl gasped with delight. “It’s blue! Does that mean it’s hotter than normal fire?”   
“Yes, it is,” Azula responded. “It’s Hot enough to melt the skin and flesh off of someone’s skeleton. The only thing as hot as my fire . . . is you. You’re so hot you could . . . melt someone's face off.”   
Kyo giggled, her cheeks now tinged pink. “Thank you, that’s so sweet. You’re nicer than I thought you would be.”   
Azula frowned. “What is that supposed the mean?” She asked, relighting the flame in her flame. The girl yelped in fear and hurried away. Azula huffed. She didn’t care about some random girl’s opinions. She was nice looking. She looked down at her hair clip.

“No mean person would wear a flower hair clip.” She assured herself out loud. She walked over to the merchant to purchase her goods.

Aang was admiring his new outfit. It was simple and consisted of dark green baggy pants that stopped a few inches below his knees and a light green tunic with gold accents. It was airy and baggy and easy to move around in. He opted to keep his Airbender shoes. Azula walked over to him dressed in her new Earth Kingdom garb. “Aang, do I look nice?” She asked.

“Yeah, the outfit looks nice on you.” Azula sighed and shook her head. 

“I meant do I look friendly?”   
“Oh, no, you look scary.” Azula glowered at him. Aang shivered. “Well, now you look even scarier.” Zuko walked over, scratching the back of his head. Azula was too angry to even bother making fun of him. He slumped against the wall and did his best to hide his face under his hat. Aang used his staff to push the hat back up.

Zuko huffed. “Why did you do- Wait what is that.” He said pointing at Aang's staff.

“Well I probably shouldn’t talk about it here, but it’s-” He lowered his voice. “ _ M _ y  _ airbending staff. It opens up a turns into a glider. I can control the air currents around it and use it to fly.”  _ Zuko touched the staff tentatively.

“It looks like a stick. Have you had this the entire time?” Aang nodded. “Can-, can you show me after?”   
“Of course, I’ll show you some tricks too.” They both grinned, exited

Iroh joined the four kids holding a bag full of all their old clothing. 

“Now why don’t we get some lunch? There’s no point in working on an empty stomach.

“Ooh, can we get custard tarts, they’re my favorite,” Aang asked. Iroh nodded and Aang jumped for joy. He jumped so high, that he drew the attention of the other shoppers. Iroh quickly pulled Aang down and steered him and the rest of the kids from the store.

. . .

Aang watched the people as they walked, happily eating his custard tart. The four of them had decided to eat the food they had bought on a large patch of grass next to the road. There were a few other groups eating near them, but they were otherwise left alone. Zuko and Azula ate quietly and had resisted Aang's attempt at conversation. Apparently talking at mealtimes was a big no-no. Iroh was willing to talk, but he had ended up falling asleep halfway through lunch, and nobody wanted to wake him up.

So he simply watched people as they passed. He couldn’t help but notice that lots of citizens were missing fingers. Some were only missing one but others were missing two or four. There seemed to be more people without all their fingers than there were people with ten. Aang leaned towards Zuko.

“What happened to everyone's fingers.” He asked.

Zuko thought for a second before responding casually “Uncle said that until recently, this village was under water-tribe rules. A common punishment they use is frostbite. They’ll encase your finger in ice until it turns black and needs to be amputated.” Aang gawked at him. “What? Didn’t you know that.” Aang shook his head. Zuko gave him a pitiful look. “The water tribe is ruthless. Don’t you know this?” Aang thought for a second. He had never met a waterbender before being frozen, he had only heard of them. Everything he had heard was positive.    
“No, the Air Nomads thought highly of the water tribe. The only people we were really worried about was Firelord Sozin.” Azula choked on her chicken and Zuko groaned. Azula coughed for a few seconds before swallowing. She gave Aang and an exasperated look.

“Fire Lord Sozin? How long were you in that ice for? He’s been dead for almost 100 years.” Aang’s eyes widened and Azula immediately regretted what she’d said. Zuko cringed as the realization of what had happened hit him. Aang looked between the two. 

“100 years.” He asked softly. Zuko elbowed Azula, silently begging her to explain. She stayed silent as Aang took the information in. Tears welled up in his eyes. “Monk Gyatso?” Azula turned away, unable to look him in the eyes. Zuko panicked, unsure of what he was supposed to do. “What happened while I was gone. What’s happened to the air nomads?” Aang asked, now on the verge of tears Zuko stuttered searching for an answer that wouldn’t destroy Aang. There wasn’t one.

“They-I mean- the Water Tribe found them. They wanted the Air Nomads to join them. The Air Nomads didn’t want war. So they . . . destroyed them.” Aang felt his entire world crumble around him as the realization sunk in. He had been gone for 100 years. Everyone he knew or loved was dead. He had lost everything expert his staff and Appa. Aang began to weep. “Heh, it’s okay, some of them probably escaped,” Zuko assured him. Aang simply cried harder. He leaned forwards until his head bumped against Zuko’s chest. His tattoo began to glow and The wind picked up aground him, rattling the dishes and waking up Iroh. Zuko awkwardly placed his hand on his back. 

“I’m sorry Aang. I don’t know exactly how you feel right now, but I know that it hurts.” People around them started to notice the wind. Zuko continued on. “ It’s rough. But you still have us.” Aang's arrow stopped glowing and he went limp. He hugged Zuko and cried quietly, mourning his friends and family. Zuko hugged him back, ignoring the odd looks they were getting from other citizens. Iroh sleepily joined the hug as well, followed by a slightly reluctant Azula. Aang cried into Zuko’s tunic, letting the sadness run its course, not even caring what the people around him would think. 

“I don’t know what’s happening but I wanted to offer my support.” Aang laughed through the tears.


	3. Fire Within

The four of them sat on the forest floor, Aang propped against Appa’s leg, while Zuko, Azula, and Iroh sat in a circle around him. Azula was twirling her fingers, watching as her blue flames spun round and round in a pretty circle. Iroh was reading a book and Zuko was meditating, his legs crossed and his eyes closed. Aang was slowly and carefully placing strands on Appa’s hair on the top of his head. Zuko remained unaware of the large pile of white on his head.

Aang held back giggles as he placed an especially large clump on top of Zuko’s hair. Zuko scrunched his nose. “Uncle is there something on top of my head?” He asked.

Iroh looked up from his book. “No, only your hair.” Aang had to cover his mouth with his hand to stop himself from laughing. Azula looked up from her small circle of fire and snickered.

Zuko frowned and blew smoke from his nose. He opened his eyes. “What’s so funny.” He turned his head, knocking the large furball into his lap. He looked down at the ball then back at Aang. He then picked it up and threw it at Aang. Aang screeched in mock terror as the ball hit him head-on, covering him in Appa fur.

Iroh chuckled. “You deserved that.” Aang giggled as he brushed himself off. Zuko hid his own grin. Zuko then closed his eyes and went back to his meditation, still smiling. Iroh went back to his book and Azula resumed playing with fire. Aang stared at the ground in front of him mind blank.

“So if the water nation is evil, how am I supposed to find someone to teach me my first element?.” Aang asked suddenly. The question had been on his mind ever since they had left the Earth village, and he’d rather get an answer sooner than later. Iroh looked up from his book slightly surprised.

“We were planning on teaching you fire first. It will give us more time to find a proper waterbending teacher.” He explained

“But won’t it be out of order. Will that mess up my training.”

Iroh shrugged. “I’m not sure. It is traditional for the Avatar to learn in order, but I’m not sure if it is necessary. I’ll make sure to check later.”

Aang groaned and laid back, running his hands over Appa’s fur. “So are you guys my teachers then.” He asked motioning towards Azula and Zuko with his foot.

Iroh shook his head. “My brother was very specific. He says he wants to teach the Avatar firebending.” He rolled his eyes. “He thinks he is a true master. I still have a few tricks I would like to show you, but most of your training will be done by him.”   
Azula cleared her throat. “While I still believe that Ozai is the superior teacher, I will admit that your Dragon of the West Roar is very effective. You still have to teach me that by the way. You already  **tried** to teach Zuko?” Aang asked.   
“I’ve almost done it.” Zuko interrupted, finally giving up on trying to meditate. “I just need a bit more practice.” Azula looked at him knowingly. Zuko groaned. “Just forget it. Where are we going next anyway?”

“We’re heading towards the palace,” Iroh told him. “But we’ll probably be stopping at another Earth kingdom town to do some practice of our own. For now, we will let Appa rest. He seems tired.”

“Oh, Okay,” Aang said. He ran his fingers through Appa’s fur, giggling when Appa groaned appreciatively. He laid back against him and closed his eyes. There was no harm in having a nap.

. . . 

Katara walked down the metal halls, Sokka beside her. Sokka was happily chewing on some seal jerky, his other hand holding the hilt of his sword. Katara was absentmindedly bending a small ball of water, making it circle around the two as they walked.

“How was practice with Hama?” Sokka asked, more of politeness than genuine interest.

Katara answered quickly“It went fine. We practiced taking water from the air, and then work on our stances. It was painfully easy. How did your ‘training’ with Ty Lee go?” Sokka responded by dropping his sword and quickly jabbing Katara in four separate places. Katara’s arms went limp and fell by her sides. The ball of water she had been bending fell to the ground and turned into a puddle. Katara’s screeched with rage. “WHAT THE HELL!”   
“I was just showing you what I learned,” Sokka said defensively. “Come on, it’s cool right. Ty Lee said it was a useful technique. You’ll get the use of your arms back in like an hour.” Katara spat at Sokka. He dodged it easily. “Has anyone ever told you your aim sucks.” Katara kicked her leg, sending the spit up into Sokka’s face. 

Sokka squealed and quickly wiped it off of his face. “Shit, I forgot you could bend with your feet.” Katara lifted her leg again, raising the water off the ground. The water froze, creating a spear of ice.    
“You better not try that on me again or I’ll .... hurt you.” Katara threatened. “You better watch your back. “Sokka laughed, unafraid of his sister. He knew that the worst would dare to do to him would be spraying him with icy water. Or maybe steal his seal jerky.

Sokka picked up his sword and the two of them continued down a hallway. Katara’s arms swung awkwardly by her sides. “Did you hear about the new prisoner?” Sokka asked. Katara shook her head. “Some Commander or something. Apparently he’s really narcissistic. I think his name was … Zhao. He sounds like a dick.” Katara rolled her eyes.

“You two would probably get along.” She mumbled under her breath. 

. . .

“You three sure you’ll be fine on your own,” Iroh asked for the tenth time. 

“Yes, uncle I promise,” Zuko repeated. “It’s safer for us to stay away from public places, and you could probably use some time for yourself.”   
Iroh stroked his beard while he mulled it over. “Fine, but if I come back and somebody is dead, I will be very sad and very disappointed. I’ll be back soon, and I’ll be sure to bring tea.” Iroh then took off down the path, leaving the three kids by themselves.

As soon as he was out of sight Azula turned to Zuko. “So since killing is off the table, how do you feel about maiming.”

Zuko smirked. “I’m pretty sure you’re the reason he’s worried in the first place.” Azula rolled her eyes before laying back and staring up at the trees above. She drew a circle with her finger and created a small ring of fire. It slowly grew and shrank as Azula controlled it. Aang moved over to Zuko. 

“Sooo, since we have some free time on our hands. Can you show me some firebending?” Zuko lazily punched the air, producing a small burst of flames. “Well, I kind of meant something a little more powerful. Like kicks and whatever Azula did back when we first met.”   
“You mean lightning?” Azula said.

“Yeah, lightning. I didn’t even know that was a thing before I saw you do it. Can you do it too Zuko?” 

“Azula why don’t you demonstrate lightning bending,” Zuko said, ignoring Aang’s question.

“Gladly.” She replied.

Azula breathed in and out slowly before moving her arms in a circular motion. The lightning gathered at her fingertips and moved with her. Then she pointed upwards.

Aang watched in wonder as Azula sent a bolt of lightning up into the sky. Zuko huffed and crossed his arms, trying to hide his jealousy. Azula did a spin kick, sending a blast of fire away from, Aang, and Zuko. She landed gracefully on her feet. “Zuzu, why don’t we give Aang a little demonstration.” She said smugly. Zuko sighed and reluctantly got to his feet and walked over to Azula. 

Zuko got into position and waited for her to attack. The two of them stood there frozen.

Azula spun into action and threw a fire blast towards him, which Zuko easily avoided by jumping to the side. He countered with a roundhouse kick, fire swirling around his legs, before shooting towards Azula. Azula easily blocked it with a wall of fire which she then pushed Zuko’s way.

Zuko was knocked back by the attack but managed to protect himself from being burned. He landed on his back and rolled to the side, narrowly avoiding another of Azula’s attacks. Azula continued her offense, throwing powerful blasts of blue fire at Zuko with ease. Zuko continued to dodge her attacks, doing his best to stand his ground and not lose his footing. Zuko finally managed to attack, hurtling a fire disk at her legs. The force of the attack knocked Azula off her feet. She fell into a handstand and flipped back onto her feet, just in time to block a short stream of fire.

Zuko aimed for her legs again, which she avoided by propelling herself into the air. She created a condensed ball of fire and threw it with as much force as possible, before falling back to the ground, landing gracefully on her feet. Zuko blocked the attack but was thrown backward by the force of it. The back of his head smacked against the hard dirt. The world spun momentarily. He knew he couldn’t recover in time. He internally accepted defeat as he looked up. His heart nearly stopped when he saw what she was doing.

Electricity gathered around Azula as she prepared to cast a fatal blow. Zuko was frozen, his eyes widening in fear. Aang jumped to his feet. Azula aimed. There was a deafening crack. Aang stood still his heart beating rapidly in his chest. Azula smirked. Zuko looked down at the charred spot beside him where the lighting had struck. He let out the breath he was holding. Azula laughed triumphantly. She was the only one laughing. Aang ran past Azula over to Zuko.

“Zuko are you okay.” Zuko scowled and got to his feet. He tried to push past Aang, Aang stopped him by grabbing his arm “Hey don’t worry, I doubt I could beat her in a fight either.” He reassured. Zuko rolled his eyes and pulled his arm from Aang's grip. He was about to storm away when Aang stopped him.

“Don’t you want me to show you my staff.” Zuko turned around intrigued. Azula finally stopped celebrating and focused her attention on Aang. Aang picked his staff off the ground.

He grinned smugly. “Watch this.” He tapped it against the ground andRed Wings unfolded from the staff. He grabbed onto the top and jumped up. He flew high up into the air, dodging tree branches with ease. Soon he was above the forest ceiling. He flew straight for a few seconds, enjoying the breeze, then did a loop, before doing a nosedive. Adrenaline pumped through him as the ground came closer and closer. He changed direction a few feet before he hit the ground

Aang flew up and around the trees. He looked down to see Zuko and Azula chasing after him on the ground. They both looked impressed. A sense of pride welled up inside him. He waved with one hand. Then he bumped headfirst into a tree. Azula and Zuko winced. Aang dropped his glider and fell. For a split second, he wondered if this was the end. Then Zuko held out his arms and caught Aang before he hit the ground. 

“Holy shit are you okay?” Zuko asked.

Aang rubbed the back of his head, groaning in pain. “Thank you, Zuko.” Zuko gently set Aang back down on his feet. “Don’t worry, I got bumped around a lot when I was first learning airbending.” He assured them.

“Speaking of learning, do you think you could teach me some firebending?” He asked excitedly. Zuko turned to Azula. She shook her head.

“I don’t have the patience to be a teacher. Zuzu, you can deal with him. Now if you’ll excuse me, I’m going to go practice some  **advanced** firebending. ” She walked back towards where they had set up camp, leaving Zuko and Aang by themselves. Aang turned to Zuko.

“Sooo, will you teach me some basic firebending?”   
Zuko shrugged. “I don’t know, it would probably be better if you asked Iroh, I’m not the most skilled.”   
Aang shook his head. “No, I want you to teach me.” Zuko raised his eyebrows surprised.    
“Really.” He asked. Aang nodded enthusiastically. “Okay, sorry if I’m not a good teacher, I’ve never really taught anyone before. 

“So the first thing you need to know about firebending is that to bend you need motivation and... energy. Yeah, that’s it. Uncle told me that without a reason or duty, a firebender is weak. I bend so I can prepare for my future and to impress my father. That is my drive.” He punched the air in front of him shooting a medium-sized fireball. 

Aang thought about this for a second. “So would my drive as the Avatar be to save the world.”

“I guess.” Zuko sat down cross-legged and motioned for Aang to sit next to him. “I don’t know if it really matters what the drive is, as long as you find it important. I once saw Iroh defeat twenty waterbenders who were trying to take over the tea shop he was in. He was so fierce and agile all because he wanted to protect the tea shop”

Aang narrowed his eyes“Or maybe,” He suggested. “He was protecting you?” Zuko thought about what Aang had said. 

“I guess it doesn’t really matter in the end. Anyways, the next thing you need to know is breathing. Being physically strong by itself will not make you a good firebender. You need control and order. Your breath is your energy. You breathe in air and release fire.” He demonstrated by holding out his hand and producing a small flame. He breathed in slowly through his nose. As he exhaled through his mouth, the flame doubled in size. Aang watched, his mouth agape. This wasn’t the first time he had ever seen someone firebend, but it was still impressive.

“I want to try,” Aang said. He held his hands in front of him and inhaled and exhaled quickly.

Zuko giggled. “You have to go slower Aang.”

Aang breathed slower. He stared at the palms of his hands. In and Out. He imagined heat in his hands. **In and Out.** He thought about candles that lit up small areas and gave off warmth.  _ You will learn the elements. You are the Avatar. _

He exhaled and a small flame appeared in his palm. It was tiny, no bigger than the pad of his finger, but it was something. Aang stared at the small flame, admiring the yellows and reds. “Zuko I did-awww.” As soon as he spoke, the fire went out. 

“It’s okay,” Zuko said. “That’s pretty good for your first try. It took a few hours of me meditating and breathing to get it my first flame.” 

Aang tried again, this time getting a bigger flame. 

“Maybe you’re just a really good teacher,” Aang suggested. Zuko flushed at the praise. Aang focused on his palms again and produced another small flame. An idea popped into his head.

“If I breathe in a lot of air, then exhale really hard, do you think the flame will be big?” Aang asked. Zuko shrugged. “I’m going to try.”   
Aang inhaled for ten seconds then held his breath. He tilted his head upwards and let out a powerful stream of air. The small flame in his palm roared, quadrupling in size. Zuko’s had to lean back to avoid being burned.

As soon as all his air was gone, the flame went back to normal. Zuko stared at him amazed. Aang burped and the flame expanded again.

They both stared at each other.

Then Zuko giggled. Aang giggled with him. Soon the both of them were on their sides, gasping for air in between laughs. They finally calmed down after a minute and sat back up again.   
“My father would kill you if he saw me do that,” Zuko admitted. “I can’t believe that worked.”

“You’ve never seen someone bend with burping before?” Aang inquired. “Back at the Air temples it happened ever meal time.” The moment quickly turned bittersweet at the mention of Aang’s old friends. Zuko awkwardly patted him on the back.

There was a rustle behind them. Zuko turned around to see Azula running towards them. 

Azula did a roundhouse kick, sending a stream of flames in Zuko’s direction. Zuko reacted quickly, raising his hands and changing his stance. He stopped the onslaught of blue fire with a wall of his own yellow flames. Azula jumped up onto a tree branch to avoid the fire whip Zuko sent her way. 

“What the hell Azula?” Zuko shouted angrily. Azula calmly strode over to the two of them.

“I was testing your reflexes,” Azula explained. “You passed, don’t worry. Now come help me prepare dinner, you know Uncle will be hungry when he comes back from his trip.”

. . . 

Zhao sat in the metal chair, his hands and ankles encased in ice. Hakoda stood in front of him, and Sokka stood next to him. A guard named Koro stood in front of the only door. Zhao stared straight ahead, his face emotionless Hakoda stepped forward. “I’ve heard a lot about you Zhao. You’re a talented firebender who uses their skills recklessly. It was amusing watching some of our beginner water benders take you down so easily.”    
“You caught me off guard,” Zhao explained defensively. “You’re lucky I didn’t kill any of them.”

Hakoda sighed. “I guess in the end it doesn’t matter. That’s not what I want to talk about anyways. The Avatar was spotted a few days ago with what we assumed to be a few nobles.” Zhao's eyes widened with surprise. “Do you know anything about that Zhao?” Zhao narrowed his eyes at him, suspicious.   
“Why should I talk to you?” Zhao snarled. Hakoda turned to Sokka and nodded. Sokka withdrew his sword and plunged it down through Zhao’s foot. Zhao yelled in pain as blood spurted from the wound. Sokka twisted the blade, further mangling his foot. Then he slowly withdrew the sword. He pointed the bloodied tip towards Zhao’s throat.

“Talk, or I’ll go for the hand next.” Sokka threatened. “Now tell us what you know.”   
Zhao didn’t know much. He hadn’t known that the Avatar had been found, hell, he wasn’t even sure if the Avatar was an Airbender or not. The only thing he knew was the identities of the nobles. A few days ago he had arranged for the crew to give them a bit of a surprise. 

“SPEAK!” Sokka ordered, pointing his sword towards Zhao’s hand. Zhao spat at him. Sokka scowled.

Zhao laughed. “You’re a fool for thinking I would ever talk to you. I would rather die than betray my nation.”

Hakoda grinned maliciously. “Trust me, what we have planned for you is worse than death. Go ahead Sokka.” Sokka nodded and raised his sword.

In one swift swing, he severed Zhao's hand from his wrist.

Zhao screamed.


	4. Missing Uncle

They ate their food in silence. Aang had tried to start a couple of conversations with Azula, only to be met with sour looks and scowls. Aang eventually gave up and excepted that dinner was going to be awkward. So they simply sat there and ate in silence. Except for Zuko. Zuko paced back and forth anxiously, his food long forgotten. 

Iroh had left hours ago and still hadn’t returned. 

Azula and Aang finished Dinner and still no Iroh. 

It was nearly night time and Iroh had yet to return. Azula had assured Aang that Iroh could take care of himself and that there was nothing to worry about. Aang knew immediately that it was a lie. Azula was fiddling anxiously, checking over her shoulder every few minutes to see if she could spot him.

As the hours passed, Zuko became more and more irritable, flinching at the slightest noise, and snapping at anyone who tried to talk to him

“Do you want some Fireflakes.” Aang offered timidly. Azula had mentioned earlier that they were Zuko’s favorite.

“I’m not hungry,” Zuko grumbled as he continued to pace. Aang deflated slightly. 

The sun went down and there was no sign of him. Zuko finally stopped in front of Azula and Aang who were on their backs, staring up at the sky. “We need to go looking for him.” He declared. 

“That’s a bad idea for many reasons,” Azula argued, not even bothering to look at him.

Zuko fumed. “How could you say that. Iroh could be dying, and you don’t even care. You never care!” He paused, struggling to find the right words to say. “You-You don’t even like him!”

Azula gasped. She sat up and pointed an accusatory finger at Zuko. “How could you think that. I care about Iroh. He’s a crazy old man, but he’s our crazy old man. And trust me, he wouldn’t want us to go looking for him. What if he got captured by Waterbenders who are waiting to ambush us? We’d be walking right into their trap.” 

Zuko thought about what she said. He sighed,

“Fine, I’ll go by myself then.” Zuko turned around and stormed off. Azula watched him go, seeming disinterested. Zuko looked back multiple times, but never stopped walking. Soon he was almost completely obscured by trees. Then he was gone.

Azula sighed. “He’s going to get himself killed out there.” She rolled her eyes. “Sometimes I wish I didn’t care about his wellbeing. Ugh, he’s probably hungry, I’ll have to bring him some fire flakes. Come on Aang, we’re going to have to follow him. You can bring your fluffy monster too.”   
“His name is Appa, and he’s an Air Bison.” Aang corrected.

“I don’t care. ZUKO WAIT!” Azula jumped to her feet, dragging Aang with her. She picked up a small bag of fire flakes, then took off in a sprint, pulling Along behind her. Appa slowly followed them. They ran through the forest. Soon Zuko was visible again. He glared at the two as they approached.

“I thought you weren’t coming.” 

“Yeah, well I changed my mind. If you die I’ll feel guilty for the rest of my life.” Zuko gave a hint of a smile and stopped walking. Azula and Aang caught up to him. “You lead the way. I’ll keep an eye out for attackers.” Zuko nodded.

The three of them walked through the forest together. Azula eyes darted around, checking for people hiding in bushes, or up in the trees. Aang walked next to Zuko, who was speed walking, a look of determination on his face. By now their only source of light. Zuko was about to light a flame in his hand when Azula grabbed his wrist.

“Don’t, we can’t want to draw attention to ourselves.” Azula hissed. Zuko sighed and crossed his arms. He squinted into the darkness. 

“I can’t see without it.” He complained. “How are we supposed to find anyone if we can’t see?” 

“Just keep walking. If we continue walking in the right direction we’ll reach the village no matter what, and I’m assuming that is were Uncle should be. So please Zuzu, stop complaining and just  **walk.** ” Zuko pouted but didn’t say anything. Almost immediately he walked face-first into a branch. He yelped and jumped backward, nearly knocking over Aang. Aang dodge Zuko and grabbed him by the collar of his shirt, stopping him from falling. 

“You okay?” Aang asked.

“I’m fine.” Zuko hissed as he got back on his feet. “It just surprised me. He pressed his hand against his face and winced. Aang narrowed his eyes.

“I think you got a small cut.” He pointed out. Azula moved next to Aang and examined Zuko’s face. Aang was right. Zuko’s otherwise unmarked face now had a red line just below his right eye. Azula wiped away the blood with her fingertip. 

“He’ll be fine.” She said. “It’s just a scratch.” Zuko glared at her. “Fine, you can use fire. Can’t have you stabbing your eyes out.”

The three of them walked in silence for about a half-hour. Then they spotted the lights of a city. Seeping into the forest. Zuko immediately sped up, determined to reach Iroh. His speed-walking quickly turned into running, which then turned into full-on sprinting. 

Aang and Azula jogged after him. They found him standing at the edge of the forest frozen. Aang was about to ask what was wrong when he saw him. Iroh was sitting a few yards away, just outside of the village. He was sitting cross-legged with his eyes closed. He was meditating.

“This is... interesting,” Azula commented. “I guess meditating is more important than we are. I wish I could say I was surprised.”

Zuko stormed over to Iroh. He grabbed him by the shoulders and shook him roughly. Iroh barely moved and didn’t show any signs of waking up. Zuko shook him harder. His head lolled to the side. A horrifying thought suddenly came to Zuko’s mind. He pressed his fingers against the side of Iroh’s neck. He immediately relaxed when he felt a pulse. 

Aang walked up to the two of them. He poked Iroh’s forehead. “Does he do this often?” He asked.

“Yeah, but he only does it in his free time for twenty minutes.” Zuko explained while he examined Iroh’’s face. “And he wakes up when you shake him.”    
“There was that one time when he mediated for a day,” Azula added. “Nobody could wake him. Eventually, Father decided to just have dinner without him. He nearly gave Father a heart attack when he walked into the dining room.” They both chuckled at the memory. “Do you think he may have gone into the spirit world again?”

“IROH CAN GO INTO THE SPIRIT WORLD!?” Aang exclaimed.

“Yeah, but he only ever did it once when he was looking for-” His expression saddened. “Lu Ten. He was so sad after that visit. Why would he want to go back there?” Azula shrugged.

Aang sat down cross-legged in front of Iroh. “I could go into the spirit world and ask him.”

“You can do that?”   
“Probably. The Monks said that since I was the Avatar it would be easier for me to travel to the spirit world. I’ll need you guys to be quiet so I can meditate.” He looked around. “And you guys might have to keep watch. I’m probably going to have to leave my body.”

Aang closed his eyes.

He did his best to clear his mind. He breathed in through his nose and out through his mouth. Minutes of peaceful nothingness passed by and Aang felt nothing. 

After a half-hour of meditating he gave up. They would simply have to drag Iroh onto Appa. He turned around to face Zuko and Azula. “I can’t do it. The monks said it should be easy! Well, I guess they didn’t say easy, they said easier” Neither of them responded. “Hey, you guys can talk now. I’m done meditating” He lifted his hand and waved it in front of Zuko’s face. He gasped. He looked down at himself. His body was tinted blue and translucent. “Woah. Awesome.” 

He tried to air bend but found that he couldn’t. “Crap. I can’t bend in the spirit world.” He turned back to the siblings. Zuko was kneeling next to Aang, shaking his shoulder. When Aang didn’t respond he checked his pulse.

“Aang’s gone.” Zuko told Azula.

Azula jolted. “HE’S DEAD!” She shrieked. Zuko reared back surprised.   
“I meant he went to the spirit world.” He corrected.   
Azula shrugged. “Oh, Okay. That was quicker than expected.” She grinned evilly. “Wanna spar while we wait.” Zuko groaned and reluctantly got to his feet. Aang took this as his cue to leave. He took off into the forest. 

He couldn’t run as fast without his airbending. Things felt so much slower without the wind pushing him from behind,

“Iroh!” He called. “IROH!”

He walked deeper into the forest. “IROH!”

Something moved in the distance. Aang narrowed his eyes and tried to spot what had moved. He slowly moved closer. His eyes widened when they landed on a blue-tinted scaly beast, hiding behind the tree. 

It was a dragon.

. . .

The guard walked briskly down the hallway. He stopped in front of a metal door and knocked twice. The door opened almost immediately revealing a tired-looking Hakoda.

“We’ve received messages from some of our spies The Avatar was spotted in a nearby Earth Kingdom Village.” The guard explained. Hakoda nodded pleased.

“Finally some good news. Send a group of around ten to check it out. 6 benders and four non-benders. We need to be as stealthy as possible. Once they’ve secured the area we’ll send the rest of the troops in” The guard nodded and exited. He walked down the hallway and knocked on the door to the waterbending training room. After a few seconds, an old lady opened the door.

“Chief Hakoda is requesting six waterbenders to go on a mission to find the Avatar. He is leaving you to decide who the six will be.” The old woman grinned. She turned around to face her group of students. They ranged from ages 12-28 and were all watching the door. All of them were well trained and powerful waterbenders. The woman quickly scanned the room.

She pointed a bony finger at Katara and another at a young man who looked no older than 20. He grinned smugly as he walked over, tying his long hair into a tight ponytail as he walked. Katara reluctantly followed. The two of them stood in front of the woman. She placed a hand on each of their shoulders. “You two will be the leaders of the other four waterbenders. You are both incredible benders and leaders, and I am willing to put my trust in you. You may each choose two more students to travel with you. Choose strategically”   
They both bowed slightly. “Thank you, Hama.” They said in unison. Katara turned back to the group and scanned the crowd. She pointed to one of the older women. She had a soft almost motherly look to her, something that would be useful if they needed to get information from someone. Katara knew that the woman was also talented at finding water in odd places. The next pupil she picked was a boy around her age. One of his legs was missing from the knee down, but Katara knew that it had never stopped him. It had only made him more determined. The boy used his ice cane to make his way over to Katara. The man next to her chose his people, a lanky girl with a tendency to hurt others while sparring, and a short muscular woman. They all stood in front of Hama and waited for instructions. Hama gestured to the guard.

“Follow him out, he will lead you to the others in your group. I have faith in you” They nodded in unison before following the guard out into the hallway. Katara did her best to ignore the guilt she felt bubbling inside of her. 

She looked over at the young man next to her. He was still grinning. She had seen him practicing before, had seen what he could do. He was always itching for a fight, searching for reasons to attack.

Katara knew that she shouldn’t be afraid. He was part of her tribe. She could guess what kind of plan was forming in his mind. Hopefully, he would kill the firebending siblings quickly.

She still felt scared.

They were taken into a small metal room and told to wait for farther instructions

A few minutes later The group was joined by four non-benders. Among the nonbenders were Sokka and Ty Lee. They were both dressed in casual Earth Kingdom attire. Sokka was whispering something Katara couldn’t hear, while Ty Lee blushed and giggled. Sokka’s hand was creeping dangerously close to her rear.

_ Gross.  _

Ty Lee’s eyes lit up when she spotted Katara. She squealed with delight and stepped away from Sokka. She excitedly clapped her hands together, cartwheeled over to Katara, then threw her arms around Katara. Katara awkwardly hugged her back. Ty Lee pulled away. “It’s so nice to see you again. Isn’t it weird how two people can live on the same ship and never see each other.”   
“Yeah, weird,” Katara mumbled. She had been actively avoiding Ty Lee. She didn’t hate the girl, but she did find her unbearably annoying. She was all smiles and giggles, and never seemed to take her job seriously. She was also the person who taught Sokka chi blocking.

“How are things with Sokka?” Katara asked out of politeness. Sokka spoke up before Ty Lee could answer.

“Girls stop your gossiping, Dad has something to tell us.” Sokka hissed. While Ty Lee had been talking, Hakoda had entered.

“The best-case scenario is that we get the Avatar him, and condition him to become a weapon we can use against the other nations. Sozin's Comet will be coming soon, and having an Avatar on our side would even the playing field. If you are not able to capture the Avatar, then plan B is to kill them. We will be at a major disadvantage, but we will also have a Waterbender Avatar who we will be able to use in a decade or two.”

Sokka smirked. Katara knew that was what he secretly wanted. It was his dream to train a waterbending Avatar, and he would happily kill the current one if given the chance. She would prefer to avoid murder if possible. The boy she had seen looked young and kind. She didn’t want to have his death on her conscience. There were already to so many haunting her. Hakoda continued explaining his plan.

“ I want the group of you to go undercover and find the location. Then split the Avatar and his friends apart. It was mentioned earlier that he was accompanied by at least two fire benders and that one was capable of lightning. I am putting my trust in you. When you have either successfully killed or captured the Avatar and we will send more troops in. Understood.” Everyone nodded. “Perfect. You are dismissed.”


	5. The Warriors of The Water Tribe

  
  
  
  


The dragon stopped a few feet away from Aang. The two of them stared at each other for a few seconds. Then Aang screamed and ran as fast as he could in the opposite direction. The dragon followed him, weaving through the trees behind him. Aang was having trouble staying ahead without his airbending.

He took a sharp turn and looked back. Then he ran right into Iroh. He fell backward and landed hard on his back. Iroh turned around surprised. He appeared unharmed to Aangs relief “Oh hello Aang. It’s nice to see you.”   
“Iroh we have to go there's a dragon heading right for us,” Aang explained quickly. Iroh looked behind him. 

“You mean that one?” Aang shrieked and hid behind Iroh. Iroh chuckled. The dragon was standing a few feet away, staring down at them. Iroh extended a hand. The dragon leaned forward and nuzzled his head against his palm.

“Do not worry,” Iroh assured. “The dragon is kind and a friend of the Avatar Roku.”Aang’s eyes widened in realization. _It’s_ _Roku's animal guide._ He thought to himself.

Iroh frowned. “Why are you in the spirit world Aang?”   
“You didn’t come back before dark, so we went looking for you. What are you doing here anyway?” Aang told him   
“The villagers were complaining of spirit troubles. It turned out to be a spirit who just wanted peace or quiet. He was very rude and insulted my tea. It was like talking to an angry teenager.” Iroh explained. “Every time I tried to talk to him he would hum loudly.:

“How did you get him to leave?” Aang asked. Iroh chuckled and gestured towards the dragon. 

“He came over and scared him away.”  
“So now that you’re done will you come back?” Aang asked. “You made Zuko and Azula worried.”  
“I didn’t think they would care. They always act like they’re too old for their dear old uncle. Well, I guess we should be heading back. I’ll make sure to tell the villagers that their spirit problem has been dealt with.” Aang sighed in relief and the two of them started to make their way back towards their bodies.

. . .

Azula absentmindedly.played with Aang’s staff. She spun it like a baton, then tapped it against the ground. She poked Zuko with it. 

“Azula,” Zuko whined. Azula poked him again. Zuko threw his shoe at her. 

She snorted. “Okay, I’ll admit I deserved that.” 

Zuko looked back at the edge of the village. He could see the market, which was filled with a variety of people. One of them, a young girl with braided hair, looked towards him. Her eyes widened and she turned away.

“Azula,” Zuko whispered. “I think we’re being watched.” Azula immediately sat up straight and looked towards the village. Her eyes scanned the crowds of people. She spotted the same girl, who was staring at them again. Standing next to her was a boy with a ponytail, who was also staring at them. 

Then they started to walk towards them. Azula jumped to her feet and stepped in front of Aang and Zuko. A group of around ten began to surround them. Azula could see right through their Earth Kingdom disguises. They were waterbenders. 

Sokka stood a few yards away from them. His hands were behind his back, and no weapon was visible. “I assume you know why we’re here.” He said. Azula sneered. “I’ll take that as a yes We don’t want to hurt you. We just need to take the Avatar and leave.”   
Zuko stood up behind Azula and pointed a finger at Sokka. “The Avatar is ours. Leave or we will attack.” He shouted. 

Sokka laughed. “There’s two of you and ten of us. We are soldiers and have trained our entire lives. We will kill you if necessary.”

Sokka and Azula stared at each other for a few seconds. His eyes were cold and his face portrayed no emotion. Azula took a few steps back towards Zuko.

“Here’s the plan,” Azula whispered. “I am going to create a distraction. While they’re distracted you take Aang and run. Find Appa, and hide. If I’m not back by morning, you leave.” Zuko nodded. The soldiers moved closer, posed to strike.

Azula moved quickly, summoning lightning in a second. The muscular woman took off towards her, a ring of water encircling her. Azula pointed at the nearest person.

The lightning struck a non-bender. His back arched as he was fried by the electricity. Then he fell to the ground lifeless. The muscular woman paused her onslaught as she turned and called out the boy's name. The others turned to look at their dead comrade. Zuko took the opportunity and ran into the forest, carrying Aang over his shoulder.

Naton and Henna were the first to Notice. They both took off towards the forest. Azula tried to block them with a fire whip. Nato ducked, and the lanky girl jumped. Out of the corner of her eyes, Azula spotted movement. She threw herself to the side as a large stream of water shot past where she had been mere seconds ago. She fell into a roll, then threw an array of fireballs at her attackers with multiple swift punches.

She jumped back to her feet and ran back over to Iroh. She blocked another attack from the one-armed boy with a wall of fire, which she then threw towards him. She was so busy defending herself from the waterbenders, that she didn’t notice Ty Lee sneaking up behind her. 

Ty Lee went to jab Azula. Azula noticed her just in time and kicked sending a stream of flames in her direction.

Ty Lee moved quickly and gracefully, easily dodging Azula’s attacks. Azula spun round and round trying to hit her. Ty Lee skipped and cartwheeled around, unphased by Azula’s attacks. Every once in awhile Ty Lee would move close and attempt to chi block Azula. Azula protected herself by creating a ring of fire around her, using it to defend herself against the other attackers who were eager to avenge their fallen friend. She could feel her energy draining as she fought Ty Lee and the others. She prayed that Iroh would wake up soon.

Azula couldn’t help admiring her skills. She had never seen someone as agile and quick on their feet as her. Water sliced at her back, ripping her clothes and leaving a shallow cut. Azula gritted her teeth and spun around, sending attacks in every direction.

_ Is this the end? _

She wondered. She thought back home. An image of her mother came to mind. Her mother who had thought she was a monster, and would rather leave than take care of her. Then she thought of her father. He loved her for her power and bragged about her abilities.

_ “No one can defeat her in battle.” _ He had once bragged to a general. 

_ If I lose my power, what will I have? _

_ “You were born lucky.”  _ He had told her after training with Zuko.  _ I am not a failure. S _ he reminded herself.

Azula was filled with a new determination. She dodged Ty Lees attack and blocked a water blast with a wall of fire. When Ty Lee attacked again, she moved quickly, grabbing her wrist and flipping her over. Ty Lee hit the ground hard, her foot bending awkwardly under her weight. She got back up quickly but the damage was already done. Her ankle was twisted

A malicious grin spread across her face.

_ I am a prodigy. _

She was so proud of herself, that she failed to notice the man charging at her with a sword. He raised the sword, aiming to decapitate her. Then Iroh body checked him. He toppled over easily. Azula whipped around and sagged with relief. “Iroh-”   
“Not now Azula.” He interrupted. “We need to get out of here now?”

Azula chuckled. “With you here, they don’t stand a chance.”

. . .

Zuko ran as fast as he could, Aang slung over his shoulder. Naton followed closely. Shards of ice flew over his head and embedded themselves into his shoulder. His back stung and each movement sent jolts of pain through his body. He could hardly see where he was going, the trees obscured by darkness. He only had a split second to see a tree and dodge and if he wanted to lose Naton, he wouldn’t be able to use fire as a light. Water wrapped around his foot and pulled. Zuko fell forward on top of Aang. 

Strong hands flipped him around and shoved his shoulders down into the dirt. Naton stared down at Zuko with a sadistic look in his eyes. Zuko kneed him in the stomach, momentarily distracting him. Naton threw himself backward, narrowly avoiding a fire blast Zuko sent towards him. Zuko did a spinning roundhouse kick, sending an arc of flames towards Naton. Naton pulled water from the trees to create a protective wall of ice. Once it had served its purpose he punched it, shattering it into a million pieces.

Zuko had already taken off, Aang in his arms. Naton took after him again, relishing the thrill of the chase. These were the moments he lived for. Zuko's legs burned and his arms ached as he pushed himself. He couldn’t run forever, but he couldn’t stop either. Naton was right behind him, waiting to kill him.

“I’d stop running if I were you Turtleduck.” Naton teased. Zuko cringed at the nickname. It sounded too sweet, like a name a parent would give to their toddler. Zuko’s fear turned to rage. His mouth went dry and a lump formed in the back of his throat. 

He stopped, then turned around. Naton stopped a few feet away from him, arms made of water hovering above him, waiting to strike. Naton was wearing a sadistic grin. Something inside Zuko snapped, Zuko opened his mouth and roared. Fire spewed from his mouth, reaching towards Naton, the blistering flames scorching his clothes and part of his arm. He jumped backward, splashing his burned arms with some of his cool water. 

Henna suddenly appeared from behind the bushes. She extracted the water from the bushes, covering her body from the neck down in a layer of water. Zuko spun around, unsure of where to focus his attention. Naton struck first, splashing Zuko with water. Henna exhaled, freezing the ice at his feet. Zuko melted the ice with a fire punch then spun, creating a wall of flames that separated him from the waterbenders and blocked their view of him. He lept backward behind some bushes, just out of view of the two waterbenders. The firewall disappeared. Zuko jumped up to the lowest branch, then began to climb, Aang still slung over his shoulder. He could hear them wandering below, searching for him. Zuko climbed quickly, hopping from branch to branch, one arm securing Aang’s body, while the other held branches for support.

Aang suddenly awoke. He didn’t flinch, already aware of the predicament. He stayed quiet while Zuko continued to climb. Once they were perched at the top of the tree, Aang made his presence known.

“Zuko.” He whispered. Zuko flinched, then set Aang down on a branch across from him.

“You're back.” He exclaimed. “Is Uncle okay?”   
“He’s fine. But what are we going to do about them.” Aang eyed Zuko’s bloodied back. “And your back? Are you okay?”   
Zuko ignored the last question. “We need to get you to Appa. Then I am going to find Azula and Iroh and bring them back so we can escape.” He explained. “We just need to wait them out. They can’t look for-”   
At that moment the tree shook then teetered. Then it began to fall. Aang grabbed Zuko’s arm as they fell and softened their landing with a pillow of air. The two of them only had two seconds to collect themselves before Henna, Naton, and Sokka, who must have joined the others while they were hiding in the tree, descended upon them. 

Henna and Naton reached out to Aang with water tentacles. Aang dodged them easily, dragging Zuko with him as they moved. Zuko clumsily punched in their direction, sending fireballs flying in their general direction. It didn’t harm them, but it did distract them.    
A boomerang whizzed over their head. Zuko watched as it flew into the distance, before making its way back towards them. He wouldn’t make the same mistake again. He pulled Aang down, letting the boomerang fly overhead. 

The waterbenders were ruthless, taking water from trees to attack, and sending shards of ice flying at the two of them. Small shards buried into their skin painfully. 

Aang moved as quickly as he could, blocking each attack to the best of his ability. A water tentacle suddenly wrapped around him, yanking him towards Naton. Arms wrapped around Aang, pinning his arms to his side. Naton hollered in triumph. “Guys I got rid of him. Get rid of his friend and we can go.” Henna and Sokka nodded. Zuko’s face lost his color. Sokka pulled out a long sharp sword and Henna pulled water from two nearby trees. Zuko reluctantly moved into a proper fighting stance. 

Panic bubbled inside of Aang. He kicked and struggled, but couldn’t escape Natons grip. Zuko fought with Henna and Sokka, putting his all into it, knowing that this might be his final fight. Aangs chest rose and fell rapidly and His hands clenched. He closed his eyes as his arrows began to glow. Henna noticed what was happening and lunged towards Aang. She managed to grab onto a handful of clothing before a strong gust of wind dislodged threw the unsuspecting Naton off of him. Sokka and Zuko were slammed against trees while Henna managed to hold on.

Aang levitated a few feet above the ground, protected in his air sphere, his eyes glowing bright white. Zuko hugged the tree as the wind threatened to throw him even farther back. Naton held onto a nearby tree with water tentacles, while Sokka tumbled backward into the forest. Henna was still holding onto Aangs leg with an iron grip. Aang roared and kicked at her with his free leg. Henna let go and was immediately thrown backward. She smashed into Zuko, sending them both tumbling deeper into the forest.

Zuko hit the ground hard, scraping a layer of skin off his sides and hands. As soon as he stopped rolling, he curled up into a fetal position. Every part of his body stung and ached. He wanted to stay on the ground forever and never have to get up again. The only reason Zuko got up, was the sound of Henna groaning a few feet away. Zuko hobbled forward in the darkness, bent over in pain. Henna shifted behind him, slowly picking herself off the ground. 

He could hear her following him. He tried to move faster, but that only worsened his pain. 

A hand grabbed his wrist and spun him around. He could barely make her features out in the dark. She looked deceptively kind for someone who was about to kill a child. The world seemed to slow as she prepared to make the final blow.

Zuko used his last bit of energy to throw himself at her. 

Zuko gripped her face with his free hand, his feet braced against her stomach, adrenaline running through his veins. Her blue eyes met his own. There was a split second of hesitation. Then He roared fire into her face. It only lasted a few seconds, but the results were drastic. The skin burned and melted from the intense hear, burning her hair and eyelids. Zuko closed his mouth and dropped to the ground. Henna stumbled around for a few moments, her hands reaching up and hovering over her charred face. The stench of burnt flesh hit Zuko hard and his stomach lurched.

Then she screamed. It was bloodcurdling and filled with agony. Zuko scurried away while Naton hurried over to her. As soon as he was out of sight he collapsed. The woman continued to screech in pain. Zuko wrapped his arms around himself, the image of the woman’s burned face seared into his mind. He felt sick.

“GET BACK HERE YOU SICK FUCK!” Natan screamed. Zuko whimpered and hugged himself

Iroh ran through the bushes. “Zuko, Azula and Aang are on Appa we need to go. What are you doing.” The woman screamed again. He instinctively looked in the direction of the screams. Through the trees he could make out a figure stumbling around, holding her face

“I did a bad thing,” Zuko whispered. “I did something horrible.” 

Iroh grabbed Zuko’s hand and pulled him to his feet. “We can talk about it later. We have to leave now.” Zuko nodded and followed Iroh back to Appa. Azula and Aang were already in the saddle waiting for them. When Zuko was a foot away from Appa he suddenly turned away from Iroh and puked. Iroh rested a hand on his shoulder while he heaved. Once he was done, he wiped his face with his ruined sleeve, before climbing up into Appa’s saddle. He leaned against Azula, who protectively wrapped an arm around him. 

“Yip, Yip!”Aang said. Appa groaned and took off. Azula and Zuko braced themselves as Appa took off. 


	6. Making Plans

“Please can we go to Omashu?” Aang begged.  
“No, we need to go to the fire nation so you can get proper training.” Azula insisted. “You can go to Omashu once you’ve saved the world and aren’t being chased by homicidal water benders.” Aang gave her a look akin to a kicked hamster-pup. He had been trying to convince her for hours, but Azula refused to budge. It didn’t help that Iroh and Zuko were backing her up.  
“Azula is right,” Iroh said. “We barely escaped them two days ago. Zuko nearly died!”  
Zuko huffed. “Uncle I had it under control.”  
Azula cut him off.“Forget that. It doesn’t matter anymore. We need to make it back home to Father so he can teach Aang firebending. ” She turned to Iroh. “Are we sure that learning the elements out of order will work?” Iroh shrugged.  
“Most Avatar’s I can think of learned the elements in order,” Iroh recalled. “But I’ve never heard anyone say that they have to be learned in order. It’s a risk we might have to take. Aang needs a real waterbender to teach him, and for obvious reasons finding one will be difficult.”  
“We could always just ask one of the prisoners,” Zuko suggested. Azula gawked at the idea. “It’s not like they have any other option!”  
“Zuzu are you that thick in the head. We can’t have a prisoner teaching the Avatar.”  
Iroh thought about what Zuko had said. “That might work. But we still have to think about an Earthbending teacher. Fortunately there are lots of options there.” He stroked his beard thoughtfully. “There should be an Earth kingdom town coming up soon. We’ll find a place tor est and come up with a plan. There should be an inn for us to stay in.”  
“Would you consider adding a trip to Omashu as part of the plan?” Aang asked hopefully. Iroh nodded. Aang whooped and jumped up into the air, and off of Appa. Zuko and Azula scrambled towards the edge to catch him, but he was already gone.  
Azula stared at the clouds below in disbelief. “Holy shit we just lost Aang!”  
“I’m right here, what are you talking about.”  
Azula screeched and nearly threw herself off of Appa. Iroh and Aang shared a laugh at her expense.  
. . .

The four of them arrived at the inn just before the sun completely sank below the horizon. They unloaded their bags and found a place underneath some tall trees where Appa could rest. Aang gave him one last hug before the four of them went back to the inn.  
The inn was a small 2 story building made of cobblestone and wood. Inside the lobby, there were elements of Earth Kingdom and Fire nation culture. Earth kingdom flags and stylized paintings of dragons covered the walls. A woman in fire nation garb sat at a desk half asleep.  
Iroh walked up and cleared his throat. The woman held out her hand. “How many rooms and how many beds.”  
“One room, two beds. I’ll sleep on the floor.” Iroh decided out loud. Azula grumbled under her breath. She knew they had to save money, but it still pained her to not have a room all by herself. The woman gave them their key and they went off to find their room  
. . .  
“Okay so here’s the plan,” Azula stated confidently after an hour of arguing. “We send a message to father and tell him of our situation. Then we go and search the Earth Kingdom for a qualified Earth Bending teacher. We bring the teacher back to the fire nation where we will find a waterbender in the prisons. Aang will learn the elements bi-weekly in the proper order.” Zuko began to protest but was quickly shut down by Azula. “We are not going to the North Pole dumbass. Unless we want to die, we will be avoiding it. Aang, Uncle, do you approve of this plan.”  
Aang and Iroh who were in the middle of a game of Pai shau, looked up surprised. “Um, sure,” Aang mumbled. “So we are going to Omashu then?”  
Azula sighed. “Yes, we’re going to Omashu.”  
“  
Azula and Zuko went to their room while Aang and Iroh went outside to practice some firebending.  
Azula looked around the room briefly before flopping down on her bed. She kicked her shoes off and untied her hair, allowing herself to fully relax. Zuko sat down on his own bed, then curled up on his side. The blankets were rough and scratchy compared to the ones he had back home.  
Zuko frowned. It had been almost eight months since he and Azula had gone looking for the Avatar. Eight months since they had last been home.  
“You’re thinking too hard,” Azula complained. “It’s stressing me out.”  
“Sorry, I’m just thinking about our mission,” Zuko admitted. He turned to Azula. The question that had been on his mind for months resurfaced.  
“Why did you come with me and Uncle.”  
Azula looked surprised for a second, then scoffed as if the answer was obvious. “I wanted to find the Avatar to please our father.” Zuko glared. Azula was an exceptional liar, but even he knew that she was lying.  
. . .  
Zuko remembered the look in his father's eyes the day he been given the mission. He looked annoyed. Azula stood next to him a grin on her face. She had been showered with praise after a very successful day of training. Zuko had only been yelled at and scolded for every mistake he made. And he made a lot of mistakes.  
“You are no longer needed here. You are falling behind in your teachings and have shown time and again that you are lacking when it comes to politics and war strategies. I’m giving you a mission to prove your worth. You will get to command your own ship and will travel the world searching for the Avatar.”  
All Zuko heard was, “I don’t want to have to deal with you anymore.” The Avatar hadn’t been seen in almost a hundred years.  
Ozai continued to explain his mission. “I’m sure your Uncle will want to go with you. You will be leaving tomorrow and will search for at least a year before returning. If you find the Avatar you may return sooner.”  
“But Dad-”  
“You are dismissed.” Zuko left the room with tears in his eyes.  
. . .  
Back in the present Azula was brushing her hair with a comb she picked up at one of the shops. Zuko ran a hand through his own shaggy hair. His cheeks flushed red with shame. He still couldn’t believe he’d done that.  
The memories felt off like they were someone else's, and in a way they were. Zuko had been furious. Every other aspect of his personality was drowned out by the unfiltered rage that burned within him. He cringed as he remembered some of the things he’d said to Iroh and Azula.  
It hurt too much to think of the letter itself. So he didn’t. Zuko got up off her bed and sat down on the side of Azula’s.  
“Did you come with me out of pity?” He asked. Azula rolled her eyes.  
“You think too highly of me Zuzu. I’m not that selfless.”  
“Then why did you come.” He snapped.  
Zuko sat in his quarters on the verge of tears. His mother had just said her goodbyes, and all of his things had been transferred into his ship's new room. “It’s not banishment it’s a mission.” He reminded himself. The ship rocked as they took off from the dock.  
His door flew open.  
“I’m not in the mood uncle.” He snapped, not bothering to turn around.  
“Zuzu, have some respect for your co-captain.” Zuko spun around to see Azula standing in his doorway, grinning smugly. Zuko smiled back.  
. . .  
“I wasn’t going to let you go and explore the world while I was in some dingy old palace getting nagged at by mom.” Her eyebrows furrowed at the mention of their mother. The answer sounded genuine to Zuko so he decided to drop the conversation.  
Zuko stood up again and took out one of the silver pieces Iroh had given him. “I’m going to get some food. Do you want anything?  
“See if they have any fire flakes. If not, then just get me some peanuts.” Zuko nodded then left the room.  
He made his way to down to the main room. It was packed with people, the majority of whom were middle-aged Earth Kingdom men. He walked past a group of men gambling with bronze and silver coins. He made his way up to the bar.  
“Excuse me.” He asked timidly. An older woman with tired eyes turned around.  
She smiled warmly. “What can I get for you young man?”  
“Do you have fire flakes?” The woman shook her head. “Peanuts?”  
“Roasted or plain?” She asked.  
“Roasted please.” The woman nodded and walked away to get him food. Zuko leaned against the counter and looked around. He felt incredibly out of place. A man walked by, carrying a pair of dual swords. He longed for his own dual swords that had been left back on the ship. He had spent so many hours practicing and perfecting his technique, and when the time came to use them they were gone.  
Someone tapped him on the shoulder. He flinched and whipped around. The woman smiled apologetically at him and handed him a small bag of peanuts as well as a tiny egg tart.  
“I don’t have enough money for a tart.” Zuko admitted.  
“It’s on the house.” She assured him. “I give them to polite customers.” Zuko thanked her again, then turned around to head back to his room. He immediately bumped into the man with dual swords.  
“Watch where you’re going pipsqueak.” He snarled, harshly shoving Zuko back.  
“Don’t stand so close.” Zuko snapped back. The man pulled his arm back to strike Zuko. He raised his hands, preparing to defend himself with firebending The woman hit him over the head with a glass bottle before the man could go though with it. He swayed for a few seconds then collapsed unconscious.  
“Some people are just looking for a fight.” She sighed. Zuko ignored her, his eyes glued to the dual swords. The woman picked up the man by his shoulders and began to drag him toward the exit. Zuko quickly snatched the swords, then hurried back to his room before the woman could say anything.  
He ran back into the room, carrying his food with one hand and his swords with the other, and kicked the door shut.  
Azula who had been sleeping, awoke with a start. She threw a fireblast in Zuko’s direction, which he easily blocked with the dual swords. Azula rubbed her eyes and squinted at him.  
“I asked for peanuts, not dual swords.” Zuko threw the peanuts at her.  
“The swords aren’t for you. And be careful, you almost burned me.” Azula stuck her tongue out at him.  
Zuko sliced the air with the swords, imagining a waterbender standing in front of him. He moved rapidly and accurately, hitting the same spot each time. Azula watched him with mild interest. Zuko took a few steps forward and accidentally slashed some of the wallpaper. He cursed and dropped his swords. Azula cackled.  
“It was only a matter of time.” She said smugly. “It’s fine. There’s holes in the hallways walls, no one will notice a rip. And if it makes you feel any better, your swordsmanship is very impressive. You could easily decapitate someone with those.”  
Zuko scowled at her.  
Azula raised an eyebrow in confusion. “Did I hit a nerve Zuzu?”  
“I just don’t like talking about that kind of stuff. I don’t want to be someone who does that often. I hurt someone really badly when the Waterbenders attack and now I feel . . . icky.  
“Zuko, you do realize I killed someone right?” Azula pointed out. “They were surrounding us, so I killed them. I don’t think about it and I don’t regret it. It’s a part of life.”  
“I didn’t kill her I maimed her.” Zuko reminded her.  
“So kill them next time.” She placed a hand on his shoulder. “It’s okay.” Zuko nodded. “Now eat your tart or I will.”  
. . .  
The overall mood on the ship was low. 1 was dead, and another was in critical condition. Katara had hardly known the boy who had been struck down, so she wasn’t too upset about missing his funeral to tend to tend to Henna. Henna was asleep, her eyes partially closed. Katara rested her water covered hands over her face. Her hands glowed, and some of the redness left her face. The burns were too deep to be healed by simple water. Spirit water might have helped, but the spirits had disappeared shortly after the hundred-year war began.  
Someone cleared their throat behind her. Katara scowled.  
“I’m busy. Come back another time.”  
“I came to see Henna.” Naton said behind her. Her frown deepened.  
“You never cared about Henna before she was hurt. Wait until she’s stable, then you can see her.” Naton ignored Katara and took a step closer. Katara moved swiftly, taking the water from her pouch and freezing it into a dagger. She pressed the pointed end against his jugular. “STAY BACK!” She shouted.  
Naton quickly retreated

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm going to try to make the next chapters feel like actual episodes so hopefully, that goes well.


	7. Kyoshi Island Part 1

Sokka sat next to Ty Lee, his eyes unfocused. He was sharpening his knife with a stone while Ty Lee practiced gymnastics next to him. She did a handstand into a bridge then looked over at him. She nudged him with her foot. “What are you thinking about?”  
“The Avatar.” Sokka responded.

  
Ty Lee giggled as she stood back up and pulled her leg up behind her head into a standing split. “I’m pretty sure that’s on everyone's mind. I heard from some of the others that he was smaller than expected.” Sokka snorted. That was an understatement. Everything about the Avatar was unexpected. He was young chipper, and somehow incredibly powerful.

  
“He was younger than me,” Sokka explained. “He was twelve and his friends weren’t much older, excluding the old man. It’s honestly embarrassing that we couldn’t defeat them.

  
“It’s okay, you’ll get him next time.”Ty Lee chirped. “At least we roughed them up a bit. That firebender princess seemed terrified of me. We would’ve gotten her if her uncle hadn’t woken up.”

  
Sokka nodded. “I wish it was just the avatar and the two kids. That would make things so much easier for us.”

  
“Sokka.”Katara called out from behind him. Sokka and Ty Lee turned their heads to look at her. Katara was standing in the doorway, looking tired and worn out.  
“Naton is out of control. He keeps coming into Henna’s room and talking to her.” Sokka raised an eyebrow. Katara groaned. “He’s won’t stop telling her his plans to kill them. Henna seemed interested at first, but now she’s just disturbed. Naton seems to think that telling her about murder is going to make her feel better. And.” She clenched her fists. “He wants to go on a solo mission. To try and get the Avatar by himself.”

“Sure, why not.”

“WHAT!”

“He seems determined, it’s worth a try. I’ll go ask dad about it.” Katara spluttered, trying to find the right words.  
“Sokka thats not what I wanted you to do. He’s a maniac!” Sokka turned around and began to walk away, Ty Lee trailing along behind him. “ SOkKA COME BACK!” Katara punched the wall in rage, bruising her knuckles. Sokka was insufferable sometimes. She stormed off towards the training rooms to go work off some steam before she went back to healing Henna.

The idea of Naton going on a solo mission haunted her.

 ** _'I’ll track them down and chase them down for a bit.'_** He'd said.

Katara grimaced trying not to think about what he said.

**_The uncle will go quickly since he’s the biggest threat. An ice spike through the head._ The fire nation princess, I’ll drown. I’ll bring her up for air five times, telling her each time how many breaths she has left.**

Katara walked into the training room. She went over to a bucket of water and bent it up in a circle above her.

_**And the boy. We can do it together. Cut of parts of his face, but not enough to kill him. Then we show him his reflection. Then we’ll drown him too.** _

Katara’s hands shook as she turned to ice into an ice dagger. She drove it into one of the wooden boards, turning it to splinters. She picked up the pieces and put them in the waste bucket. When she stood back up she saw Naton with Tylee. Katara felt sick even looking at him.She formed another ice dagger and eyed him. At least she had a plan if things went south.

. . .

“I thought we were going to Omashu,” Zuko said as he looked down at the island before him.

Aang grinned sheepishly. “Yeah, but Kyoshi island was closer, and I wanted to check it out first. Iroh says it’s where one of my past lives used to live.”

Zuko looked back down at the island. He could see a tiny village below him and maybe a statue. There were a handful of simple wooden houses, and a few villagers could be seen milling about. It looked rather plain. He wondered why an Avatar would want to spend time here when there were so many better places to go. Aang seemed to be excited by the looks of it. Aang was looking down at the village excitedly.

As soon as Appa landed, Aang leaped off and floated gracefully down. He almost immediately began to take off his shoes and pants.  
Azula jumped down and threw his discarded shoe at him. “What the hell are you doing. Put your clothes on.” Aang ignored her and pulled his shawl and shirt over his head.

“I’m going to ride the elephant Koi fish.” He explained before running into the water. Azula rolled her eyes and went to unpack their things. Zuko climbed down from Appa and watched Aang as he swam out into the ocean. Zuko dipped a finger into the water and shivered. The water was freezing.

“Should we stop him.”He asked Iroh.

Iroh shrugged. “I don’t think I could if I wanted to.” Aang stopped swimming and started treading water. He turned back to see if Iroh and Zuko were still there.

“WATCH ME!”Aang screamed before disappearing beneath the surface. Zuko waited anxiously for him to pop back up. Suddenly, A large elephant koi burst from the water, with Aang holding onto his fin and tagging along for the ride. He waved excitedly at them before disappearing back under the surface. Zuko chuckled. He had to admit that Aang’s childish antics were entertaining.

When Aang appeared a second time he was still waving. Iroh decided to humor him and wave back. Aang decided to wave with both hands and was thrown off the fish. Zuko and Iroh both cringed as he bellyflopped back into the water. He came up to the surface a few seconds later with a huge grin on his face. “YOU GUYS SAW THAT RIGHT!” Iroh gave him a thumbs up.

He started to swim back towards the shore.

Azula tapped on Iroh's shoulder. “How long are we planning on staying here? Because I already feel like we’re wasting time.”She glanced in Aang's direction. “I feel like he’s already forgotten that we’re in the middle of a war.”  
“At least a day,” Iroh responded. “But no more than a week. I know Aang wants to explore the world, but there are more important things that need to be dealt with.”

Zuko gasped and pointed at the ocean. Iroh and Azula looked to where he was pointing. A large grey fin was moving towards Aang unbeknownst to the airbender.

“I’ll swim out and get him,” Zuko said, taking a step forward, a look of determination on his face. Azula yanked him back.

“That's going to make it worse.” She hissed. She turned back to the ocean. “AANG! HURRY UP!” She screamed. Aang picked up the pace a little, still unaware of the creature behind him.

“Maybe it’s not as bad as we think,”Zuko said hopefully. The creatures rose above the water and bared its many sharp teeth. Aang noticed the disturbance in the water and looked behind him. He leaped above the water and started to run back towards the shore.

The creature followed him, snapping at his heels. Iroh prepared himself to shoot lightning at the creature if necessary. Thankfully, he managed to make it to the shore before it could get him. He collapsed onto the ground, completely worn out. Zuko crouched down and poked him a few times. Aang swatted away his hand. Azula dropped his clothing on top of him. “Put your damn clothes on.” Aang tiredly complied.

Iroh and Zuko picked up their share of the luggage and started to head towards the village. Zuko carried Aang's bag while he got his clothes back on. Aang went on and on about how he had always wanted to ride an elephant koi fish, and that it was one of the coolest things he’d ever done.

“It was really brave,” Zuko added.  
They stopped when they reached a wooden statue of Kyoshi herself. The paint was faded and the wood was dirty, but Kyoshi was still recognizable. Azula studied the statues face for a second.

“You were hot in a past life,” Azula said. Iroh gave her a disappointed look. “Oh come on, you were all thinking it too. I bet Zuzu agrees with me.’ She waited for his response. When there wasn’t one she looked back. Zuko was gone.

They suddenly jumped out from their hiding places and descended open them. Warriors dressed in armored Kimikos and armed with fans attacked. Azula tried to defend herself, but they were too quick. She was knocked off balance and thrown to the ground, where her arms and legs were quickly tied behind her back.  
Aang landed beside her with a thump. Iroh raised his hands in surrender and laid down on the ground next to them. One more warrior walked out, dragging a pissed off Zuko behind them. She dropped him next to Aang.

“Good to see you again Zuko.”Aang said nervously. Zuko grunted in response.

“What brings you here?” One of the warriors asked, pressing her foot down on Azula’s back.

“We have the Avatar. We’re on the search for an Earthbending teacher.”Iroh explained. The warrior eyed him skeptically as she pressed down harder on her back. Azula twisted, attempting to knock the warrior off.

“We can prove it,”Zuko said. “Aang, show them your airbending.”All heads turned to look at Aang. Aang took in a deep breath and blew out a stream of air, pushing himself up off the ground. The warriors gasp. “He is the avatar.”One exclaims. “We need to tell the village.”

The one who had brought Zuko protested. “How do we know they’re not here to stir up trouble?”

“He’s the avatar.” One of the other warriors assured. They surrounded the four of them and untied them. Azula decided to contain her wrath out of respect for the hustle. They were ushered over to the village.

They were immediately swarmed by people, although most flocked to Aang. Aang was thriving under the attention. He pulled out a few marbles and made them spin in a circle mid-air. One of the guys watching screamed with joy before collapsing onto the ground.

Aang was practically dragged away from Iroh,Azula, and Zuko. One of the warriors walked over to them. “Let me escort you to your homes.” She offered. “It will be night soon.” Iroh checked quickly to make sure Aang was okay.  
Aang was currently talking with some of the warriors who were excitedly gesturing to the statue. “Sure,” Iroh said. “Also do you have a tea shop?”

. . .

Aang collapsed into the bed they had given him after hours of greeting people and performing little airbending tricks and stunts. He was exhausted and happy. They loved him here. He knew that being the Avatar was kind of a big deal, but this was on a whole different level. He was a celebrity. Aang could still hear them talking outside.

“The avatar is up there? I wonder if he’s training? I wonder how long he’ll be saying.” Aang stood up and shut the window, so there finally quiet. He jumped back into bed and slipped under the covers.

He pulled the blanket over himself and looked around the room. Each of them had been given their own bed and had been split into two rooms. Aang was sharing a room with Azula, who was already asleep in her bed. It was weird seeing her looked so relaxed.

He yawned and laid back in his bed.  
Aang closed his eyes. He imagined that he isn’t at Kyoshi island, and is instead back at the Southern Air Temple tucked away in his own bed. He imagines Gyatso waiting for him in the morning so they can bake pies together, before tossing them at the grumpier monks. He soon fell asleep dreaming about playing tag with the other Air Nomad teens.  
. . .

The village was incredibly welcoming of them. They were given their own home to reside in, along with large platters of food and comfy blankets. They weren't palace quality blankets, but they were the best Azula and Zuko had seen in months.  
An all you can eat breakfast was set out for them when they walked into the main room. Aang ate mainly treats and by the end of breakfast, he was literally bouncing off the walls.

Then he was released into the wild, with Azula trailing behind him.

The village was especially welcoming of Aang. A gaggle of little girls constantly followed him, begging to see another one of his tricks. Iroh had been let loose in the local tea shop and probably wouldn’t be leaving for hours, and Zuko had disappeared to who knows where.

So Azula continued to follow Aang. It was awkward, mainly because it made her look like another one of Aang's fangirls. There were teens her age in the village, but she had no idea how to approach them without scaring them.

It was humiliating,

And when she thought it couldn’t get any worse, a little girl started to whine about being tired. Her whining was so grating that Azula decided she had to put a stop to it. So she carried the girl on her back, while she drooled on her clothes  
I hate my life.

The entire day was a waste of time. Aang ignored his duties and training and instead spent all his time soaking in the affection of five and eight-year-olds. The five-year-old on Azula's back shifted, digging her heels into her back.

_Do not punch the kid Azula, do not punch the kid._

“Wow, this place is the best,” Aang told her while they walked down the main street of the village.

“You should stay for a while.”One of the girls said. “At least for a few weeks.”

“We can’t do that small child. The Avatar has duties he must attend to.” The girl began to cry. Azula winced. Aang quickly calmed the girl down by showing her is marble trick. The girl laughed and hugged his waist.

“I’m sure we can stay for a week or two,” Aang said. “I’m sure Iroh will understand.”

“It’s not that great. And we’ve only been here for one day and I’m already bored. ”Azula argued.

“Well, I still think it's great. I don’t know what it is, but there's something that makes me want to stay here.” Azula looked back at his entourage. “I can’t seem to figure out what it is.” Azula sighed. She couldn’t tell if he was really that oblivious, or if he was messing with her.  
“Aang, I’m bored.” A little boy complained. “Do something cool.”

Aang suddenly jumped high up into the air and landed on one of the roofs. Cheers of wonder and excitement erupted below him and he bowed, a smug grin on his face.

Azula couldn't help but smile too.

 _At least he’s enjoying himself._  
. . .  
Zuko snuck over to the small building where he’d seen the Kyoshi warriors go earlier. He walked over to the window and peered over the top. They had taken them down with ease yesterday, and he wanted to learn more about their fighting style. If it could take down Azula, it was worth learning.

Zuko watched them practice for a few minutes, admiring their technique. Partway through the demonstration, the head girl whipped around and pointed at him with her fan. “Thought you could get away with spying on us?” Zuko flinched and tried to flee. The warrior burst through the front door and ran in front of him before he could escape. The warriors surrounded him, the lead one staring him down with a look that could kill.

“Sorry.” Zuko stammered. “I wasn't trying to be creepy, I just wanted to watch you guys fight.”She narrowed her eyes. “I-I like your fans.”He added on quickly.

“Why would you care about how we fight. You already have your firebending, what else would you need.”

“I fight with swords too. I’ve never been the best at firebending, so I try using other methods. ” She continued to glare at him for a few more seconds.

“You seem sincere. I guess I can forgive you. My name’s Suki. I already know your name so don’t bother telling me. We don’t usually let people watch us practice. Especially not boys. But if you wanted to you, could join us.”

“Sure.” Zuko responded.

“Okay. But if you want to practice with us, you’ll have to follow all our rules.” She pulled out a makeup brush. “And I mean all of them.  
. . .  
Suki carefully painted Zuko’s face. He had tried his hardest to not move while she painted over his eyelid with red. When she was done she showed him a mirror. The other Kyioshi warriors crowded around them, curious to see how Zuko would react. Zuko took one look into the mirror and his eyes widened. He stared into the mirror for a couple of minutes, admiring Suki’s work. “It’s beautiful. I look like a completely different person!”.He exclaimed. “Can you teach me now.” Suki nodded. She would never turn away a student as eager as he was.

The first thing you need to know, is that we don’t use strength to defeat our opponents. We use the force of our opponents and redirect it. We use their momentum against them.Try to punch me. And don’t hold back.” Zuko nodded and pulled his arm back, aiming for Suki's face. He trusted she was prepared to deflect. He punched hard. Suko stepped out of the way and shoved him from behind, knocking him off balance. He tried to land a kick, which she ducked. Zuko jumped back before she could attack and prepared for the next attack. Zuko continued to attack with quick jabs, which Suki easily blocked. She faked a punch to Zuko’s right, then poked him in the forehead with the head or her fan with the other. Zuko immediately stopped fighting, pressing a hand to his forehead.

“Ow, that really hurt.” He complained. Some of the other warriors giggled.

“Yeah, thats kind of the point.” Suki said. “That was pretty good though. Ready for another lesson.” Zuko nodded.


	8. Kyoshi Island Part 2

They were heading to Kyoshi Island. Hakoda had heard rumors about the Avatar arriving, so they were being sent to check it out. They were allowed to do whatever they wanted until they arrived, and Katara had chosen to train.

She hadn’t been sleeping well for the past few days, and it was starting to have its effect on her. There were dark bags under her eyes, and every movement was slightly slower than usual. She knew that a nap would be the best use of her time, but the idea of laying down and being left with her thoughts made her cringe. 

Hama walked over to her from the other side of the room. “You haven’t been sleeping well.”She stated. “Why are you wasting your time training when you could be preparing yourself for the mission ahead.”

“I’m too stressed,” Katara answered bluntly. “And I don’t feel like it.”  
  


Hama sighed. “I heard that Naton is getting to you.” Katara tensed. “For all that it matters, I do agree with you. Naton can be unnecessarily cruel. You already know how I feel about these things. Quick and efficient is always the best way to go. I’ll make sure that he is not approved to go on a mission by himself.” Katara visibly relaxed. Hama placed a hand on her shoulder. “Go to bed Katara, take care of yourself.”  
  


Katara nodded. “Thank you, master Hama.”

. . .

Aang woke up, excited for his second day on Kyoshi Island. He threw back the covers and looked over at Azula's bed. She was still fast asleep. The sun was out, so Aang decided it was time to wake her up. He got up and tiptoed over to her. He grabbed her shoulder and gently shook her.

Her eyes immediately opened and landed on Aang. “Good Morning Aang. Why have you woken me?”  
  


“It’s morning.” Azula seemed dissatisfied with this answer.

“Aang, do you know how often I get to sleep in?”Aang shook his head. “Never. We have nothing planned today, so I was planning to sleep in. You have ruined my plan.”  
“You can go back to sleep?”Aang offered.

“No.”Azula sighed. “I’m already up, there's no point now. Now leave, I need to get dressed.” Aang nodded and left the room, making sure to fully shut the door behind him. In the main room, there was a table full of breakfast foods and treats. Iroh was sitting at one end, happily sipping tea and eating a custard tart. Aang took a seat next to him and plucked a couple of sugar cookies from one of the dessert platters. 

A few minutes later, Azula emerged from their room and took a seat on Irohs other side. “ZUKO! GET IN HERE!” She yelled.

There was a thump from Iroh and Zuko’s room. A few seconds later a dazed Zuko opened the door. “Good morning Zuzu. I just wanted to make sure you didn’t miss the family breakfast.” Zuko rubbed his eyes and walked over to the table and took a seat next to Aang. Aang pointed at a white spot on Zuko’s cheek.

“What's that?”  
  


“I trained with the Kyoshi warriors yesterday?” Zuko said proudly. “Wearing face paint is part of it.”

“Learning different bending and fighting styles is always beneficial,” Iroh told Zuko. “I’ve created life-saving techniques by studying water bending scrolls.” 

“So you were with those girls who ambushed us a few days ago?” Azula asked.

“Yep.”  
  


Azula toyed with her food for a moment.“Do you know if any of them happen to be single and interested in fire nation girls?”  
  


Zuko threw a roll of sushi at her. “I’m not doing anything that again, so don’t even think about it. It was scary enough talking to them in the first place, I don’t wanna have to flirt for you. Just go ask them yourself.”

  
Aang took a fifth sugar cookie and watched the drama go down.

“Zuko I’ll scare them away. You’re adorable, people love you. It almost worked last time.” 

Zuko was seething, exhaling smoke. “Stop calling me adorable.'

"Oh Zuzu, don't deny it. You know you have the cutest face around." Zuko brought his fist down against the table, making the plates rattle.

"Forget it. I'm going to go train with them. If you want friends, make them yourself." He then stood up, and walked out, muttering under his breath. Azula rolled her eyes and went back to eating, unbothered.

"Azula, you need to stop antagonizing your brother." Iroh scolded. "Especially when he's right." Azula scoffed. "You need to learn how to make friends on your own."

Azula wiped her face with a cloth. "Whatever. Come on Aang, let's go entertain the masses." She stood up and gestured for Aang to join her. Aang stuffed some more cookies in his pockets before joining her. 

When they opened the door they were immediately greeted by a cheering crowd. Azula forced herself to smile, while Aang happily greeted everyone, even hugging a few of the more enthusiastic ones. 

Azula could already tell it was going to be a long day.

. . .

Azula watched Aang as he paraded around, a group of kids following him eagerly. 

She couldn’t deny it anymore. She was jealous. She longed to be home, where people would stop and bow whenever she walked. At home, she was the second most important person in the Firenation. Here, she was just some foreign princess.

She decided to split off and go see what the Kyoshi warriors were doing. The building was easy to find in the small village, and Azula made sure her presence wasn't known. She peered in through the window, and her eyes immediately landed on the head girl.

She had heard someone else in the village refer to the girl as Suki. Azula watched as Suki moved, each punch calculated and powerful. She looked ready to go fight in a war. " _My type of gal._ " Azula knew that together, the two of them could take on the world together. All she had to do was talk to her. Ask her how her day was, what her favorite food was, the most efficient way to kill a person.

Azula internally berated herself. That was why she couldn't talk to people. She watched Suki for a few more seconds. It hurt how she was so close, and so far away at the same time. Talking to her would be easy. Talking was almost always easy. Bonding with people, especially people her age was a whole different thing. She moved away from the window. 

Azula sighed and walked back towards the shore. Maybe letting off some steam with firebending would help. She made sure she was far away from the wooden village before she started her training. Blue flames shot from her hands, momentarily heating the air around her. 

_Still got it_. She thought to herself.

Azula was about to start her first round of training exercises when she spotted something on the horizon. At first she thought it was just a wave that happened to be slightly bigger than the rest. Then she noticed the person riding it. She turned around and ran, not wanting to face the waterbenders while they were on land. It had only been one day. Apparently, that was long enough for the water tribe to find them. Azula warned everyone she passed by of the incoming attack. She finally reached her destination, the tea shop. She threw open the door.

Iroh was talking to the owner of the teashop. The two of them jumped in their seats when the door was flung open and Azula ran in. 

"They're here."She told them. "The waterbenders found us." Iroh stood quickly, nearly knocking over the table.

"Go find Aang and your brother. I'll find Appa. We need to leave immediately. Azula nodded and ran back out the door. Villagers were running to their homes, and hiding I cellars, preparing for the upcoming attack. 

She bumped into Aang, who was trying to get away from his fan club. "Guys, I need to go help." He told them. Azula lit a flame in her hand and waved it near them. They screamed, scrambling back, to get away from her. Azula grabbed Aang's arm with her other hand and yanked him close. 

"Go find Zuko, bring him back. By that time we should have Appa."She looked back towards the shore. "GO!" 

Aang nodded and took off to find the Kyoshi warriors. He ran as fast as he could, so it only took a few seconds to reach the building.

Aang threw open the door to see Zuko standing among the other students, wearing the armored kimono and makeup. Zuko turned around to look at him and gave Aang and Awkward smile. Aang paused, his mind going blank for a moment. 

“Oh, you look good Zuko."He paused. "Also, the water tribe found us and they’re attacking our village.”Suki tensed and immediately took off running. She shoved Aang out of the way and ran towards the village, followed by the other Kyoshi warriors. Aang and Zuko followed behind them. By the time they arrived at the village, all hell had broken loose. Azula and Iroh were in the street, their backs to each other as they fought off the water benders. Suki dodged an ice dagger and swept a waterbender off their feet and slammed their head against the ground, knocking them unconscious. 

Aang turned to Zuko. “What should we do?” He asked.

“We need to find Appa and go. They’re here for you. If we leave they'll leave.” Aang began to protest. 

“We can’t just leave them behind, they’re my friends.”  
  


“You just met them,” Zuko argued. “Please just listen to me-LOOK OUT!” Aang turned around and ducked, narrowly avoiding the blunt end of a spear.” He recognized his attacker. Zuko summoned his fire daggers and glared at Sokka.

Sokka pointed the spear at Zuko. “Awww, aren’t you pretty?” Sokka teased. “I’m sorry little lady but I’m going to have to borrow your friend.”Zuko swung at him which Sokka easily blocked, raising his arm so Zuko's forearm hit his own, stopping his attacks mid-swing. Sokka pulled out his club and swung it towards Zuko. He was suddenly pushed aside by a gust of wind from Aang. Sokka rolled when he hit the ground and jumped back up. He blocked a fireball from Zuko byd spinning his spear and threw his boomerang in Aang's direction. Aang stepped to the side and counter-attacked with a large air blast. The three of them went back and forth, Sokka easily managing to hold his own ground against the two benders.

Zuko was about to attack with another fire jab when he was pushed out of the fight by a powerful stream of water. Katara emerged from her hiding spot in the bushes, surrounded by a ring of water. Zuko jumped back up and lunged at her.  
  


Sokka turned his attention to Aang. “I guess he’s out of the fight. Do you think you can handle me on your own? Or are you going to run and hide like the scared little child you are?”

Aang frowned. “I don’t want to hurt you. Leave now and we’ll leave you alone.” Aang bluffed. Sokka laughed.

What are you going to do, hug me to death.” Aang and Sokka circled each other, neither one striking. “Are you afraid of me? I’m just a non-bender, what do I have against the Avatar.” He thrust his spear forward causing Aang to flinch. Sokka laughed. “Come on, give me something to work with. Show me what you got.”

Aang scowled. “Why are you so happy about this?”He asked.

Sokka shrugged. “What can I say, I enjoy my job.” Aang noticed that he was slowly inching forward. Aang swiped forward with his staff, sending a wave of air towards Sokka. Sokka dropped to the ground and plunged the tip of the spear into the Earth, securing him to the spot. Then he jumped up and attempted to hit Aang with a quick jab. Aang moved forward, ducking under Sokka’s arm. Sokka managed to grab hold of his staff and pulled. Aang tried to yank it back. They fought over the staff, stuck in a game of tug of war. Sokka suddenly let go and Aang stumbled. He managed to create an air cushion that pushed him back before he fell. As soon as he was back on his feet he was forced to move. 

Sokka was relentless. He had pulled out a machete and was swinging wildly. Aang barely avoided the machete as it swung by his head. Every time he attacked with air, Sokka found a way to stand his ground, holding on to whatever was nearby to stop himself from being blown back. Aang launched himself at Sokka and attempted to disarm him by grabbing his machete. Sokka spun around and struck Aang on the side of the head with a club.

Aang cried out in pain, propelling himself backward, his hands cradling his head. His head throbbed painfully and the world around him became blurry. Aang collapsed onto the ground, dazed. He tried to get back up but was pinned down by Sokka.

Sokka was stronger, older, and weighed almost twice as much as Aang. He couldn’t move. “Stay down or I will kill you.” Sokka threatened. Aang stayed where he was, terrified. Sokka easily picked Aang up and started making his way back to the ship.

“Why do you have so many weapons?” Aang slurred as he drifted in and out of consciousness. He closed his eyes, waiting for the pain to fade.

. . . 

Zuko and Katara had been going back and forth for the past few minutes. They were both restrained in their attacks, not wanting to hurt the other. Zuko was hardly using his fire at all, resorting to his dual swords and martial arts training instead. Katara struck, sending a water arm out to grab him. Zuko rolled under and threw himself at her.

Zuko slammed into her, knocking them both to the ground. Katara rolled onto her knees gasping for air. Zuko jumped up his heart beating wildly. Katara wiped some dirt from her face before standing up. She adjusted her stance and pulled water from her pouch. Zuko reached behind him and pulled out his swords. Katara covered both her arms with water and reached out to grab Zuko. He sliced at the water arm with his sword, then brought it back, purposely missing Katara’s neck by an inch. Katara turned her water into an ice dagger and slashed at him. He blocked with his swords and attempted to swipe Katara's feet from under her. Katara jumped and used her remaining water to cover Zuko's head. She lifted the water bubble up with him in it. Zuko flailed, keeping his mouth shut so he wouldn’t inhale the water. Katara grinned. 

Zuko sliced again with his sword. It ripped through her clothing and through the first layer of skin on her shoulder. She dropped the bubble in surprise and pulled the water back so she could heal herself. 

Zuko kicked, sending a fireball her way. Katara blocked it just in time but was knocked backward by the force of it. She grunted as she hit the ground. Her unhealed cut bled freely, staining her tunic.

“Looks like someone's off their game.” Zuko gloated. Katara snarled, digging her fingers into the soft earth below her, water quickly gathering around her fingertips. She whipped around, throwing shards of ice towards Zuko.

Zuko dodged most of them, but was struck in the shoulder by one of the smaller ones. He ripped it out and raised his sword. Katara prepared to block the strike with her water. As Zuko brought the sword down he threw the closed fan he had in his pocket. 

The fan’s head struck her forehead hard. She dropped the water around her and stumbled backward disoriented. Zuko swept her feet from under her with his leg, sending her tumbling to the ground. She held a hand to her forehead and moaned in pain. Zuko picked up his fan and ran off to find Aang.

He quickly spotted him, slung lazily over Sokka’s shoulder. Zuko sprinted towards them and threw a fireball towards Sokka's feet.

Sokka jumped in surprise and kicked off his now burning boots. Aang took the opportunity to shove himself away from Sokka. He formed an air scooter and sped over to where Zuko was. Sokka reached behind him and pulled out his boomerang. Zuko brought out his swords, maintaining eye contact with Sokka, daring him to try.

Sokka looked behind them and gaped. Behind them, Appa roared as he flew towards the ground where Sokka was standing. Sokka dove out of the way just before Appa landed. Aang jumped up onto Appa and Iroh reached down and started to pull Zuko up. 

Zuko was almost onto the saddle when a hand reached out and grabbed his leg. Sokka’s fingers dug into his leg through the cloth of the kimono. Zuko attempted to kick him off with his other foot. Sokka held on tight. Azula looked down to see what was keeping Zuko from joining then. She leaned over the edge and grabbed Sokka's wrist, letting her hand heat up, burning his skin.

Sokka let go of Zuko's leg and fell back to the ground. Iroh pulled Zuko up into the saddle and Aang grabbed the reins. “YIP YIP!” Appa took off. Azula and Zuko looked down at the village as they flew away. The waterbenders had stopped their attack to watch them leave. Zuko spotted Suki standing in the main street looking up at them. He hoped she would be okay.


	9. The King Of Omashu

Aang stared out at the empty sky lost in thought. Everyone else was asleep. It had been a little over a day since the incident at Kyoshi island and everyone was still exhausted. Aang was tired too, but the guilt was keeping him awake. He had no idea if they left when he left, or if they stayed to finish them off. 

Aang rubbed his tired eyes. They'd be at Omashu by sunrise. It would be a nice distraction from everything.

_You let them down._ The voice said in the back of his head. _Just like you let down your people._

Aang wished that Gyatso was here. He always knew how to make him better. Aang ran his fingers through Appa's thick fur. "At least I still have you, buddy." Appa groaned in response. 

"You should get some sleep Aang," Iroh said from behind him. Aang flinched. He had been sure everyone was asleep. Iroh placed a hand on his shoulder. "I'll keep a lookout. You need to sleep." 

"I can't. Whenever I try to I just start thinking about the Kyoshi warriors." Aang confessed. "I'll be fine. I have Appa to keep my company." Appa grunted in response.

Iroh nodded and moved back to his original place on the saddle. He started to hum a tune. It wasn't a song that Aang recognized. The melody was simple and soothing and Aang soon found himself nodding off. He yawned and laid back, staring up at the stars. His eyelids slowly closed. The last thing he heard before he lost consciousness was Iroh quietly singing the song.

"Leaves from the vine, falling so slow. Like fragile tiny shells, drifting in the foam."

. . . 

Katara couldn’t sleep. The village they had attacked was still fresh in her mind. All her injuries had been healed, and her clothing had been stitched, but the guilt still remained. When the Avatar and his friends had left, they had watched him. They had been so close to finally capturing him, only to have him fly away.

Sokka was devastated. He had almost got him. It hurt him to have been so close and still failed. He had taken out his rage and frustration on a nearby house, pulling out his club and bashing the walls in. Katara was relieved he hadn’t taken his anger out on a person. If only Naton had been the same.

She stared up at the ceiling, wishing for sleep to come. When she finally realized it was hopeless, she decided to go on a walk through the ship. Almost everyone was asleep, so she would be undisturbed. 

She wondered through the ship. She wandered out to the deck of the ship and looked over the edge at the ocean.

“Hey.” Katara flinched. She turned around and relaxed. It was Sokka. “You can’t sleep too?” Katara nodded. Sokka held out a piece of seal jerky. “You want some?” She took it and turned back to the ocean. Sokka looked over with her as he chewed on his jerky. 

“We should go on a trip or something,” Sokka said out of nowhere. “It’s been a while since we’ve had a vacation, I think we deserve the night off.”

Katara smirked. “A vacation to where? We’re in the middle of the ocean?”

“The water looks calm. Remember when I used to make those crappy rafts when I was a kid. Maybe we could make a mini ice raft and just sail around.” Sokka suggested.

Katra climbed over the railing. “Already on it.” She let go of the railing and fell down towards the water below. Sokka watched her as she landed, the water reaching up to cushion her fall. Ice formed beneath her feet as she exhaled. Soon she was standing on a floating ice block. Sokka jumped down, landing gracefully on the block of ice. He dug his spear into the ice so he would have something to hold onto.

Katara raised her hands, then threw them back, propelling the makeshift raft forwards. Sokka whooped as they sped through the water. Katara laughed as they went over a small wave, sending them airborne for a second. 

“THIS IS AMAZING!” Sokka screamed. Katara nodded in agreement. She slowed down the boat and slowly brought her hands up, raising the water under the raft and the raft itself up into the air. She paused once they were about ten meters above sea level. Then she dropped them.

  
Adrenaline pumped through their veins as they fell, still holding onto the spear. When they landed Katara relaxed, taking a moment to catch her breath. “Is that the fasted you can go?” Sokka teased.

Katara rolled her eyes. “Oh, you wanna see fast.” Sokka nodded.

He immediately regretted his decision when Katara pushed them forward, and he nearly flew off the raft into the water.

. . .

Zuko, Iroh, Azula, and Aang gawked at the gate. "Well, this wasn't here last time." He muttered.

"The last time you were here we weren't in the middle of a war." Azula reminded him. They walked over to the guards standing out front. They immediately tensed and pointed their spears at them.

Azula gave them a cold look. "We are fire nation royalty. Put your spears down or we will be speaking to your supervisor." They lowered their spears. "Thank you. We have brought the Avatar here to find an Earthbending master and will be staying a couple of days." The guards nodded and stepped aside. 

They slowly bent the doors open. Iroh thanked them, and cleared his throat, hinting at Azula and Zuko to follow Only Zuko thanked them. Aang was practically vibrating with excitement at this point.

"There’s so much we need to do." He exclaimed. "But first we need to find the mail delivery system. My friend Bumi came up with this amazing idea too-" He trailed off when he noticed the old man standing in front of them. He was dressed in hideous purple robes and was eating something that closely resembled crystals. Azula cleared her throat.

“We need to get by, we want to speak to the King.”She said, her annoyance obvious.

The old man laughed. “That’s me.” Azula flushed, embarrassed by her mistake. The king laughed again. “You weren’t expecting a crazy old man to be the king. Well I wasn’t expecting the Avatar to be so funny looking.”  
  
Aang giggled. “Thank you, I like to make people laugh.”Iroh approached the King and bowed. His bow was returned by the King. 

  
“Now, we have a lot to discuss, don't we. Are you hungry, I have rock candy and lettuce?”  
  


“That would be lovely,” Iroh responded.

The King gestured forward. “Then lettuce-leaf.” He cackled at his own pun then hobbled off towards the highest part of the town. Azula grimaced. 

. . .

The meal Bumi had made for them had more than lettuce and rock candy to everyone’s relief. There was salad, drumsticks, pies, and tarts. Azula kept an eye on Bumi while he conversed with Iroh. She had a hunch that he was hiding something, and was wary of him. The king noticed she was staring and spit out the piece of lettuce he was chewing.

“Have I got something in my teeth?” He asked. He then proceeded to reach into his mouth and pull out his dentures. Zuko and Aang nearly choked on their food. The king examined his teeth. “Hmm, I don’t like this one, it looks suspicious.” He pulled one of the fake teeth out and threw it behind him before putting the dentures back in,

“So, we’re here to find an Earthbending teacher,” Aang announced. The King nodded.

  
“So I’ve been told. I’m willing to make a deal. You complete three tasks, and I will help you find an Earth teacher,” He took a bite of his rock candy. “If you refuse my terms you will be kept here for all eternity.”  
  


Azula stood up. “I’m sorry, but we don’t have time for whatever you’re playing. We will be leaving no matter what. It’s your decision if people have to get hurt or not.”  
  


“Azula, please don’t threaten him. I’m sure he means well.” Iroh assured. Azula pointed at the King with an exasperated expression. “He’s eating the tablecloth!”

  
The king looked down at the tablecloth he’d been chewing on. “My bad, I thought it was lettuce. They have a very similar texture. And I’m sure the Avatar can at least humor me and attempt the three tasks. If he’s a qualified Avatar he should finish them easily.”

Azula scowled. “He is the best Avatar. How dare you challenge him. He will finish your tasks with ease. Right Aang?”  
Aang shrugged. “Sounds good to me. When does the first task start?”

“How about now.” The king suddenly jumped up. “We’ll finish dinner later. We have a task to attend to.” He hobbled towards the door. “Are you going to keep me waiting? I’m old, I don’t have time to wait.”

. . .

They arrived at a large cave covered in stalactites. Hanging up on the ceiling was a lunchbox. Surrounding the lunch box there were many spider bats. They hung from two of their eight legs and looked down at Aang with unnerving bright red eyes. 

“Be a dear and fetch my lunch box for me.” The king asked. “And try not to shake it too much, I don’t want my sandwich to fall apart.” He pulled a drumstick out of his pocket and started eating it.

“Why do you need your lunch box if you already have food?” Aang asked.

“Because my servants made it and it can’t go to waste. Now go get it.” Aang looked up at the ceiling. He pulled out his staff and opened it. The spider-bats startled at the noise and turned their heads towards him. He flew up towards it and reached out towards the lunch box. As soon as he was near it the spider-bats started flying. They made terrible squeaking noises as their spindly legs flailed about. Aang yelped as one flew into his face. He fell back down, narrowly avoiding being impaled by one of the stalactites. Zuko and Azula anxiously watched beside the King. Iroh sipped his tea with a shaking hand

Aang got back to his feet and attempted again. The bats attacked again and he was forced back to the bottom of the cave. “Keep doing the same thing, I’m sure it’ll work eventually.” The king said before taking another bite from his drumstick.” Aang seethed. 

He picked up the staff and flew towards the old man. He ripped the drumstick from his hands and threw it at the spider-bats. They immediately attacked the meat, following it as it fell to the cave floor. While they were distracted, Aang grabbed the lunchbox. He flew back to the King and held it out. “There, I got your stupid lunch box, now what?” 

The king thought for a second. “Hmmm. Go to the next room on the right and bring back jewelry for me. We’ll be waiting upstairs when you’ve found it.” Zuko started to argue but Iroh shushed him. Aang nodded and headed off towards the room. Iroh gave him a reassuring pat on the back before he left

He found the room quickly. It was blocked by a large green door. Aang pushed the door, and to his surprise, it easily opened. He walked inside. It was pitch black.

He opened the palm of his hand and inhaled for a few seconds, focusing intently on the warmth within. A medium-sized flame appeared in his palm, lighting up the room 

Aang groaned. The room was filled to the brim with coins and sculptures, but there wasn't any jewelry insight. He pried the horse-lions mouth open, checking to see of the mad king had hidden it in there. He looked back at the pile. "I'm going to be here for hours. I'm never going to be able to find any jewelry." The house lion neighed. 

Aang started on the pile closest to him, tossing aside coins and jewels. There was still no jewelry insight. When Aang was down with the first pile he laid down on his back. He looked up at the horse-lion. “Do you know where I can find jewelry for the king?’ It leaned down and licked Aang's face.

Aang narrowed his eyes.

"Wait a minute.

. . .

The doors in the main room burst open and Aang rode in on the horse. Bumi smiled and reached out to pet it. "You're terrible at naming your pets," Aang said. 

"Wait until you meet Meat Dumpling," Bumi said with a sly grin. Aang face palmed while the king cackled. "Sorry, I'm going a little power crazy. Don't act like you wouldn't do the same if you were king. Now Hurry up, we have one more challenge." 

Aang followed the King down the halls for a few minutes. He stopped at a large stone door and opened it with ease, revealing an area made of Earth. The two of them stepped into the room. Two men that Aang hadn’t seen before stepped in after them. One held a large metal axe, while the other held a spiked club.

  
  


“Your final challenge is a duel. You must pick your opponent by pointing at them.”Aang thought for a moment. 

“I choose by pointing?” He asked. The king nodded. Aang smirked, thinking that he’d finally outsmarted him. “I want to duel.” He raised his hand and pointed at the old king. “You.”

The king grinned. “Wrong choice.” He adjusted his stance, his bare feet sticking out from under his robes. His back straightened and his feet tensed. The horrible purple clothing slid off his shoulders revealing muscular arms and an equally muscular torso. Aang watched the king transform, his eyes wide. The king laughed maniacally before He raised one hand and yanked it forward, tearing off a chunk of wall and sending it flying towards Aang. Aang jumped back, dodging the attack and landing in the arena.

The king followed, jumping down and cracking the ground where he landed. Aang backed up, holding his hands up in surrender. “I changed my mind. Can I fight the guy with the club?”

The king stomped the ground. “No, take backsies.” He kicked, sending another rock flying in Aang's direction. Aang dodged again and counterattacked with a burst of wind. Bumi raised a rock wall to block it. “It’s getting a little chilly in here. Are you hoping I’ll catch a cold?”

“You’re insane,” Aang shouted. The king ran towards him. Aang jumped over him and floated down to the ground.

“Have we resorted to name-calling? I thought the Avatar would be better than that.” The king teased. He stamped the ground again, creating a domino effect of rising rocks, heading straight towards Aang. He jumped high up and started to spin, creating a whirlwind around him.

The king stumbled, momentarily losing his footing. He dug his fingers into the stone to steady himself.

“Now that's more like it.” He shouted. He lifted a rock and tossed it at Aang. The rock got caught in Aang’s funnel and spun around him before bing tossed back at the king. He blocked it easily with his forearm. 

“Easy peasy.” The mad king suddenly laughed, snorting in between. Something clicked in Aang's mind. He stopped the whirlwind and landed gracefully on the ground. The king gave him a confused look while Aang stared intently at him.

“BUMI?” The king’s eyes widened. Aang waited for a response, his heart beating widely. The king raised a bushy eyebrow. Then he gave Aang a familiar smile. Aang burst into tears. “BUMI IT’S YOU!” Aang took off towards him, sprinting as fast as he could. He threw himself against Bumi and hugged him. Bumi was the first familiar person he’d seen since leaving the iceberg. 

Bumi lifted Aang off the ground easily. “You haven’t changed a bit.” Aang nodded, wiping away snot and tears with the back of his hand. 

“It feels like only a few months have passed since I last saw you.” Aang managed to get out between sobs. “But now you’re so old.” Bumi patted him on the back. 

“You know what would make you feel better?” Bumi asked. Aang shrugged.

. . .

Riding the mail chutes was just as fun as he remembered. The cabbage man had screamed at them for almost a half hour after they collided with his cart. He couldn’t do anything about it of course. Not while King Bumi was there.

Afterward, they met up with Iroh, Azula, and Zuko. Aang properly introduced them to Bumi. “I’m glad you finally figured it out. Keeping it a secret was hard.” Iroh admitted. 

“So, is Bumi going to be Aang’s teacher?” Azula asked. “Because we really need to get going.”

Aang turned to Bumi expectantly. Bumi smiled. “Nope.” Aang’s face fell. “I’m sorry Aang, but I can already tell that I am not the teacher fit for you. I’m old, a little crazy, probably a little too into drugs and- I think you get my point. There is a teacher out there for you. It’s just not me.”

  
Aang nodded. “I understand.” He gave Bumi one last hug. “Hopefully I’ll see you soon.”

Appa flew down next to them. Zuko and Azula climbed on first, followed by Aang. Iroh stayed back and talked to Bumi for a few minutes. When he was done, he climbed back up on Appa. They all waved goodbye as they took off.

“Well that was unhelpful,” Azula remarked. Zuko playfully shoved her. She snorted, then paused. “Wait, why does Omashu have a king, isn't there already an Earth King.”

“Some things you just have to ignore,” Iroh told her.

Azula huffed. “There must be something in that rock candy he keeps eating.”


	10. Four Lessons

They had found a nice cave to sleep in for the night. Appa had already curled up at the back of the cave and was sleeping soundly. Zuko and Azula were setting up their sleeping bags near the fire Iroh started. Aang set his sleeping bag next to Zuko's and curled up inside it.  
  


He watched Zuko for a few seconds. Zuko was staring intently into the fire, the flame reflecting in his eyes. Aang looked into the fire and tried to see what was so interesting about it, but he quickly became bored. _Maybe it’s a firebender thing._ He thought to himself.

He looked over at Iroh. “Can you teach me some firebending tomorrow?” He asked.

“That sounds like a wonderful idea,” Iroh said. “I’m sure Azula and Zuko will want to help you as well.” Azula nodded while she brushed her hair. Zuko continued to stare into the fire, completely oblivious to anything around him. Aang thought back to storms that had happened every so often at the air temples. Aang would sneak out with some of the other kids and stand in the rain, feeling the wind and listening to it roar. Afterward, they would spend hours trying to replicate how it felt and sounded, but they could never get it right.

He looked into the fire and felt its heat, admiring how alive it seemed. Aang turned back to Zuko, who was half asleep, his head resting on his arms, and eyes half-lidded, still staring into the fire.

Aang decided not to bother him. He said goodnight to Azula and Iroh then laid his head against the pillow and closed his eyes. He quickly fell asleep while the feeling of the wind repeated itself over and over again in his mind.

. . .

Aang was woken up by Azula shaking him. “Get up, we’re training.” She rolled him over onto his stomach. “Uncle made breakfast. You’re the last one up.” Aang slowly crawled out of his sleeping bag and stood up. He yawned loudly and scratched the back of his neck. 

Iroh and Zuko were sitting around the fire, eating cooked fish. Aang’s stomach growled. He stumbled over to the two of them and was immediately offered food. He graciously accepted before sitting down next to Zuko.

“Even the monks didn’t wake me this early,” Aang complained to Zuko.

“Wait till you meet my father,” Zuko warned. “He says we need to rise before the sun so we can be prepared. He makes us get up while the moon is still in the sky and the servants are asleep.” 

  
Aang cringed. “Wow, you’re dad doesn’t sound fun. No offense.”  
  


“None taken.” Azula said from her seat across from them. “He’s not trying to be fun. He wants us to be dangerous. The training is hard, but the results are worth it.”

Zuko’s expression saddened, and he looked down at the ground embarrassed. Aang decided it was best not to mention it.

After breakfast, Iroh took the three of them to the top of the cave. It overlooked the ocean and was devoid of trees, bushes, or anything else that could be considered flammable. Iro told the three of them to sit down.

Iroh sat down across from them. “The first thing you need to know about firebending is that it does not come from physical strength. It comes from the breath. Breathe in through the nose and exhale through your mouth.” The three of them followed his instructions, breathing for a few seconds, then exhaling. The air around Azula heated, and Aang shifted uncomfortably. He breathed in again, cooling himself with air bending.

Iroh rested a hand on his stomach.”The breath is your energy. If you can control your breath you can control your energy.” Aang remembered this lesson. Zuko had briefly taught him a couple of weeks prior. Iroh inhaled through his nose and exhaled smoke.

“It will also help you to control your internal fire. Inside every firebender-” He gestured to Aang. “Or Avatar, there is a fire that is used to create the fire we use when fighting. Breathe in and out and imagine the fire within you growing.” Aang did as he was told. He worried for a second that the fire might burn his insides.

When he started to concentrate, breathing in and out like he had been told, he felt the warmth within him. It wasn’t a burning sensation like he had feared. It was a cozy blanket that enveloped him, spreading a comfortable warmth throughout his body.

Aang exhaled smoke. Iroh nodded. “Very good. Hold out your palm. Use the internal flame to light a flame.” Aang did as he was told. The flame was much bigger than he expected, the flames leaping up above him before settling into a more manageable amount. 

Aang started, inhaling sharply. His flame shrunk down to the size of a thumb, then flared when he exhaled. Zuko moved away from Aang, eyeing the flame nervously. “Keep your breathing steady.” He reminded him. “This lesson is about restraint.” Aang nodded and his flame went back to normal size.

“I had trouble with this at first too,” Azula assured him. “I nearly burned our father’s eyebrows off.”

Zuko snickered at the memory. Iroh couldn’t help smiling. 

“Please don’t burn my eyebrows off, I’m already balding.” Iroh joked. Aang giggled. “Now, try to control the size. Feed it your heat and energy to make it bigger. Then imagine it flowing back into you as you take the energy back.” Aang did as he was told. He could feel the heat leaving his body as his flame slowly grew in size. It flickered for a moment before shrinking back down. Aang tried to make it bigger again but found that he couldn’t.

“Zuko, can I have some of your flames?” He whispered. Zuko held out his hand and Aang swiped his own over it, trying to steal some of his fire. 

“That’s not how it works dumbass,” Azula argued. Aang continued trying just to spite her. Iroh observed with a raised eyebrow. Suddenly, a flame appeared in Aang’s hand. He gave her a sly grin. 

“Good job Aang. If you continue to practice this technique, you’ll have mastered it in no time.” Iroh remarked, ignoring Azula’s shocked expression. “I can already tell that you are a natural firebender.” Aang beamed.

Azula put out her flame and stood up. “Okay, I think you’ve had enough of that. I want to teach him next. I want to teach you about lightning.”  
  


. . .

Azula, Zuko, and Aang stood at the highest point of the cave. Iroh had taken a tea break and was watching them from afar. He trusted that they could take care of themselves. “I don’t expect you to bend lightning today, or for the next few months or years. I started learning lightning bending when I was twelve, and summoned electricity for the first time when I was thirteen.”

She took a deep breath and began moving slowly in a circular motion. Electricity danced around her, gathering at her fingertips. She pointed up at the sky and a large crack echoed across the land. Aang watched with wide eyes as the lighting was shot up into the sky, momentarily giving the world a blueish hue. He looked truly amazed by her talent and it made her heart swell with pride. Azula then pressed her fist to her palm and bowed.

“Lighting can only be summoned when you are at peace of mind. You can’t be distracted by any worldly problems, you must only focus on the electricity flowing through you.” Aang jumped up.

“Can I try?” He asked.

“It’s not going to work,” Azula said. “But I guess you can try.”

Aang nodded and started moving his arms in a circular motion just like Azula had done. He focused on his internal heat and imagined electricity flowing through him. There was a spark near his fingertips. Azula’s eyes widened and Zuko’s jaw dropped.

Small sparks of electricity appeared around him as Aang moved. He grinned widely as he pointed towards the sky.

He was then thrown back around twenty feet when it exploded in his face. He hit the ground and rolled for a few seconds, nearly tumbling down the hill. Azula and Zuko rushed towards him and grabbed his arms, hoisting him to his feet. Aang was dusted with soot, and the sleeves of his shirt were slightly burned. But he appeared to be mostly unharmed. 

“Woah, that kind of hurt.” He said nonchalantly.

“It’s probably for the best. If you did it on your first try Azula would lose her mind.” Zuko joked.

Azula scoffed. “Don’t act like you wouldn’t freak out too Zuzu. Lightning bending is not easy. Although that was a very good first attempt. Our father will be impressed”

  
“Can I try teaching Aang something?” Zuko asked.

  
Azula shrugged. “Sure. Iroh would be thrilled to see you two working together.”

. . . 

Zuko had taken Aang to an area with more uneven ground, rocks, and places to hide. “I want to teach you how to fight. You have to move quickly and be aggressive.”  
  
“I think I can do the first part, but I’m not sure about the second,” Aang admitted. “Air nomads are pacifists. We’re supposed to be peaceful.”  
  
Zuko sighed. “You don’t have to be aggressive to other people yet. You just have to move with sharp and powerful movements.” He punched forward, sending a small fireball spiraling towards a rock. Aang took note of Zuko’s wide stance and adjusted his own.

Zuko jumped and performed a roundhouse kick, creating a fire arc. He moved quickly after landing, spinning around to face Aang again. Aang attempted to replicate his first move, punching forward. There was a small burst of flame. Aang flushed, embarrassed.

“You need to put more power behind it.” Zuko advised, “Imagine that you’re putting your fist through a tree trunk.” Aang nodded, and tried again, straining his muscles as he jabbed forward. There was still only a small burst of flame.

“Don’t forget what uncle told you.” Zuko reminded him. “You still need that internal fire. Feel the fire inside you and let it out.”

Aang’s arms fell to his sides. “I don’t know Zuko. I don’t think I have it in me.” 

Zuko scoffed. “Of course you have it in you. You’re the Avatar. Even the iceberg we found you in couldn’t put it out. Nothing can. NOW LET THE FIRE OUT”

Aang leaped forward with a battle cry and punched, creating a medium-sized fire blast. He could feel the fire within him, flowing through his veins and erupting from his fist. It was a feeling unlike any other. “I did it” Aang exclaimed. “Whatever you were doing worked.”

“That’s great. NOW DO IT AGAIN.” Zuko shouted. 

Aang kicked with all his might, creating a small stream of fire. He lowered his leg and stared in awe at the small scorch mark on a nearby rock “Woah. Maybe all I needed was a hype man.”  
  
“I’m not a hype man.” Zuko protested.

Aang laughed. “Sorry. Thank you for the encouragement my good hotman.” 

  
“That’s somehow worse. Just call me your training partner.”

  
“Aww, you’re no fun.” Aang teased. 

“It’s not supposed to be fun.”Zuko reminded him, even though he was smiling. “Now, I want you to try and put what you’ve learned to the test. You try to aim at me, and I’ll block whatever reaches me.”  
  
Aang hesitated. “But what if I hit you?”  
  


“Since I know it’s coming, it’ll be easy to block,” Zuko assured. Aang still didn’t move. “Aang, if I ever feel like I’m in real danger, I promise I’ll tell you. You trust me right?” Aang nodded. “Great, so try and hit me.”

Aang took a deep breath and exhaled slowly. He raised his arms and adjusted his stance. Then he kicked sending a fireball towards Zuko. He blocked the attack easily. Aang jumped and did a spinning kick, a move he had seen Zuko use earlier, to send an arc of fire in Zuko’s direction. It missed Zuko by a few feet.

The two of them fought for well over an hour, going back and forth with simple techniques and motions. The only reason they stopped was fatigue. Azula watched them from her rock. She had been observing them and couldn’t help the pang of jealousy that she felt seeing them get along. That same amazement he had harbored for her seemed to also be shared with Zuko. Aang liked Zuko more than her. He had been so impressed with her skills, but at the end of the day, it didn’t matter. 

_‘I’ll teach them another lesson. To be quick on their feet and never let their guard down. They will laugh and be impressed.”_ She convinced herself. She had done it so many times before, and Zuko had only ever been mildly annoyed.

Zuko rubbed his eyes and yawned. Aang blew a leaf up and down over and over. 

Azula suddenly jumped from behind a bush for another sneak attack. Neither Aang or Zuko noticed. She grinned mischievously and kicked with all her might. 

Azula sent a large ball of fire at the unsuspecting Zuko, expecting him to block the attack like he had done so many times before. Aang turned just in time to see it. Time slowed as Zuko looked up a few seconds too late. Aang watched in horror as Zuko’s eyes widened, his arms rising up in a last-ditch effort to protect himself.

He wasn’t fast enough.

The fireball hit him full force, striking the left side of his face with a horrible sizzling sound. Zuko let out a bloodcurdling scream as he was knocked backward, landing with a thump on his side. Aang leaped up and ran to him while Azula’s face fell as she realized what had happened. 

Aang kneeled beside Zuko, who had his hands covering his face. “Zuko are you okay?” Aang asked, already knowing the answer. Zuko whimpered, shaking his head. “Zuko talk to me, please,” Aang begged. Zuko shook his head again refusing to remove his hands. 

“I’m so sorry, I didn’t mean to,” Azula explained, taking a few steps towards them. 

  
Aang whipped around, his face twisted into a scowl.“You didn’t mean to?!” He shouted back. “You did this on purpose. You threw a fireball at him!” He looked down at Zuko. “We need to get Iroh. IROH-”

“No, don't call him, I didn’t mean to hurt him. I'll find a way to heal him. I’m sorry, please.” Azula said desperately. Zuko began to shake on the ground. Azula tried to move closer but was knocked back by a gust of wind.

“Get away from him." She opened her mouth to protest.“STAY BACK!”

Azula obliged, terrified of the look in the boy's eyes. It wasn’t anger or sadness. It was fear.

“Please don’t tell him. I didn’t mean it” Azula begged. “I promise I didn’t mean to hurt him.”

Aang looked back down at Zuko then turned to her enraged. “What is wrong with you?” He shouted. “Don’t you feel bad? You hurt him! IROH, IROH!” Iroh finally appeared, running down the hill. He was about to ask what the problem was when he noticed Zuko curled up on the ground.

Iroh rushed over to Zuko. He kneeled down next to him. Zuko sobbed with relief “I can’t see.” Zuko cried. “My eye, I can’t see out of my left eye.” Iroh reached down and pried Zuko’s hands from his face. Iroh kept his expression neutral as he examined the third and second-degree burns that covered the left side of Zuko’s face. The skin was puffy and blistering, and his eye was swollen shut. Small sections of skin were charred and blackened while other sections were a bright red and peeling. It would leave a nasty scar and Zuko would be lucky if he could ever see out of his left eye again. Zuko’s good eye was trained on Irohs, waiting for a reaction of some sort.

“Uncle.” Zuko croaked. “Is it bad?”

“Aang, get us some water. NOW” Iroh ordered. Aang nodded and took off to get water from the lake. “ Zuko, it’s going to be okay. Just try to stay calm.” Zuko nodded. “How much does it hurt?”

Zuko thought for a second. “I mean- it feels . . it hurts in some places.” He sniffled. “I can’t feel parts of my face.” Iroh grimaced. He helped Zuko into a kneeling position. Aang returned with a bowl full of cool water. Iroh took the bowl and placed it in front of Zuko. 

“Place your face in the water. It will help to treat the burn.” Zuko moved into a sitting position and submerged part of his face in the water. He inhaled sharply as the cool water touched his skin. Aang stood a few feet away, watching the two anxiously. Azula stood a few feet away staring at the ground. 

Minutes passed slowly, the only noise breaking the silence being small whimpers from Zuko and soothing words of reassurance from Iroh. Aang and Azula remained silent, frozen in place. After about ten minutes, Iroh told Zuko to remove his face from the water. He tore a piece of cloth from his shirt and wrapped it around the burned part of Zuko’s face.

“I need to go to the village. Will you and Aang be able to look after yourselves while I get medicine?” Zuko nodded. 

“I will go to the village with Azula to get help. Aang, you stay here and keep Zuko company.” Azula started to protest. “AZULA! Stay quiet and come with me. You have already caused enough damage.” Azula didn’t say anything after that. She simply followed Iroh. 

Aang sat next to Zuko, who leaned against him. He was shaking so Aang wrapped an arm around his shoulder in an attempt to comfort him. 

. . .

Iroh came back a few hours later with a healing cream and special tea that was supposed to numb the pain. Azula trailed behind him looking ashamed. Aang refused to look at her, instead focusing all his attention on helping Zuko

Iroh made tea while Aang helped Zuko properly bandage his face. Every second he spent staring at the burn made him more afraid of the fire. Air could never do something like this to a person.

The rest of the evening was spent in silence. Azusa stayed at the back of the cave her back to the rest of them while Iroh took care of Zuko, wrapping him in a blanket and serving. Aang stared into the fire, trying to find the beauty Zuko had seen the night before.

They went to bed early, putting out the fire shortly after dusk. Aang crawled into his sleeping bag, despite not being tired and tried to fall asleep. Another hour passed and everyone was asleep. Or at least everyone should have been.

Aang laid on his side, wide awake, staring at the firepit. He spotted movement out of the corner of his eyes and turned his head to see what it was. He watched as Zuko sleepily moved over to Iroh. “Uncle?” He asked.

“Yes?” 

“Will I ever be able to see out of this eye again”

A few seconds passed. Aang held his breath. Iroh looked Zuko in the eyes and placed a hand on his shoulder.

“Probably not.” There was more silence. 

Then there is a whimper, followed by a gut-wrenching sob. Zuko collapsed to his knees and dug his fingers into the dirt. Iroh leaned down and held him, not saying a word. Aang looked away and listened as Zuko cried loudly. He stayed there in Iroh’s arms for a few minutes, letting out his pain and fear through tears. Then he started to speak.

"I deserve this. After what I did to that woman I deserve it.”  
  


Iroh shook his head. “You had every right to defend yourself. They were not there to take any prisoners except for the Avatar.”

“It’s not just that,” Zuko whispered. “What am I going to tell people. Everyone's going to see me like this and wonder how I- Dad’s going to be so disappointed.” He began to cry louder

My father will never love me now.” Zuko said through sobs. “I can’t go back like this, he can’t see me, how am I supposed to fight.? He'll be ashamed to be seen with me” He inhaled shakily. “He’ll hate me if he sees me, Please don’t make me go .”Iroh shushed him. Zuko hiccuped as Iroh held him, one hand rubbing circles on his back to calm him,

“You are better than Ozai believes. He is a fool and if he won’t teach you I will. You will adapt just like you’ve always done. If there is one thing I’ve learned from war, it is that we can adapt and overcome so many things.” Zuko wiped his eye with his sleeve. “And I will always be here for you. I will take you to a doctor tomorrow and I will sort things out. Everything will be okay.” Zuko sniffed and nodded.

“I’m-I’m sorry for getting tears on you.” Zuko apologized. Iroh placed a reassuring hand on his shoulder.

“Don’t worry about it, it doesn’t matter. What does matter is you.” Zuko smiled tearfully. “I just want you to be happy.”

“Okay. Thank you, Uncle.”

“Get some rest,” Iroh told him. “Wake me up if you need me okay?” Zuko nodded again. Aang closed his eyes as soon as Zuko climbed into his sleeping bag next to him. Iroh dragged his sleeping bag a few feet closer to Zuko's before climbing in. 

Aang did his best to forget the second half of the day and go to sleep.


End file.
